The Restricted Side
by leogrl19
Summary: KOTOR fic Alright, the deal is that this time Revan has the choice not only to be dark or light, but gray. RevanBastila pairing. Chapter 16 is out! Boom, baby!
1. Race to the Escape Pods

This is my first official fan fic, so don't spare me any comments because I still consider myself a newbie.

Disclaimer I don't own anything of Kotor- clearly

This story is about a male Revan (Kaleb) who has the choice of being gray and is just looking out for number one and his relationship w/ Bastila because there just isn't enough of 'em. And I love the pairing, call me old-fashioned. Anyway it starts at the beginning and just skips to the good parts because that's too much writing for me. Okay I'm gonna shut up now enjoy! Oh and side note you might be confused his Kaleb, but it was Gale so you might see that and go what, but I revised so read on.

Chapter 1

" What the hell was that!"

Kaleb was startled out of his deep slumber suddenly by a man with white hair and a standard republic uniform busted in without warning.

" Hey what are you still doing in bed?"

" I don't know . . . gosh what was it that people did in beds oh that's right-**sleep.** ,Kaleb replied with a bitter sarcasm.

He wasn't so grumpy and sar- well damn he couldn't lie about the sarcasm, but that was just the kind of guy he was. Laid back and sarcastic, very much so he admitted. Ignoring his comment he went on

" My name is Trask Ulgo and I'm your bunk-"

" Look **_Trask, _**Kaleb interrupted rudely, "I don't need your life story, I just want to know what woke me up."

Clearly irritated he continued " What disturbed your little nap, is the evasion from the Sith."

" The Sith -what did they do now!"

" We didn't do anything!", Trask argued trying to clarify the situation, " They're here for Bastila Shan, the commanding officer of this mission."

Kaleb groaned in aggravation " I'm still not understanding about what this have to do with me so anytime you want to get to that part I'm all ears."

" Okay as much as I want to spend time arguing back and forth with you, did I forget to mention that... I don't know... oh yeah **WE'RE UNDER ATTACK!**"

He was clearly pissed at Kaleb's lack of concern, but again Kaleb didn't care.

" We all took oaths to protect Bastila so its time to make good on those and help. So put on your gear and do your job." He concluded icily.

Kaleb grudgingly did what he was told.

The whole time he was mumbling about " That stupid oath this" and " I never heard of any stupid oath." " I'm going to tell you now that I'm not doing the whole 'save the damsel in distress crap."

Trask mumbled something under his breathe and opened the door.

As soon as they stepped out of their bunk Kaleb instantly got a transmission.

He groaned "I just want to get to the escape pods."

It was an officer that told them the same thing Trask said.

"That was Carth Onasi, if he says things are bad then you better believe it!"

"Well since he wasted three minutes of my escape time, he replied not really caring, so let's go."

Trask was glad that he didn't have the same shift as him or he would have drove him crazy. As soon as Trask unlocked the second door, they saw a lone Republic soldier with two Sith gunning them down. They tried(well Trask did) to save him, but he didn't make it, but this didn't stop the Sith from switching to them.

Trask immediately started blasting at them and Kaleb, preferring a sword started to hack and slash. He had to admit that there was something he didn't like about killing- it just didn't agree with him. He was all for people getting punished when they did something wrong, but nobody deserved to have their life taken from them. Knocked out of his regret, Trask was telling him to hurry up and come on. He quickly ran over to him, only to encounter some more Sith. It was apparent just how much they didn't care about life when they killed their own soldier with a grenade. Deciding to end this fight as quickly as possible, he took their idea and threw a grenade at them.

All of them died in the blast and Kaleb smiled confidently, " Well that's one way to do it."

For once Trask agreed with him, " You got that right."

As soon as Kaleb moved to the door, that opened to the next area, he automatically heard a conflict.

He opened the door and Trask, obvious as always, replied: " It's a dark jedi! This fight is too much for us, we'd only get in the way."

Kaleb struggled to not say that he wasn't in any real rush to help in the first place, just smiled. While the two were fighting the woman jedi got a lead on the male jedi and struck him down, killing him. Trask was about to congratulate her and ask her if she was okay, but was cut off by a blinding explosion that killed her.

" Damn! We could have used her help!"

Kaleb shrugged " No use of crying over spilled milk. Let's get to the bridge."

When they finally made it there, after killing two more Sith, there were seven or eight Sith waiting for them. They cut down the first two as quickly as possible and luckily the explosion from the front killed the rest.

True to form as always, Trask announced " Bastila isn't here so she must have made it to the escape pods- the Sith want Bastila alive! If she's not on board then they have no reason not to spare the Endire Spire."

Suddenly perking his attention, Kaleb replied, " Then why are we standing here when we should be getting to the escape pods ourselves!"

He started to running toward the door and they were almost there when a dark jedi came out of the outer door.

" Oh no its another jedi!", he exclaimed.

Kaleb swore if he Trask stated the ridiculously obvious one more time he didn't know what he do. Trask ran toward the jedi.

" Hurry up and go, I'll try to hold him off!"

Even Kaleb had to admire Trask's bravery will he went out the door, he knew that he wouldn't risk his life for somebody he hardly knew.

As he was running he spotted a Sith with explosions going off behind him. He had the advantage since he was using a melee weapon and his opponent was firing a rifle. He quickly dodged his bolts and had stabbed him in his chest before he could get his sword. He took his medpack and credits and continued to the door.

" Okay fifty credits, on Sith behind this door.", he said to himself.

He opened it and sure enough there was two Sith waiting to fight him. Fifty credits for me, he thought. He used his power attack on one of them, killing him instantly, but he still had one more. Unfortunately he had a sword out and he struck Kaleb's arm at which he groaned in pain. " You're going to pay for that!",he growled as he struck his leg to cut off his range of movement. He screamed in pain as he fell to the ground and Kaleb raised his sword above his head and stabbed him. " I told you that you would pay." He spat at him and used a medpack as he walked out, but Carth had contacted him again before he could reach the next one.

" Be careful, there's a battalion of sith behind that door, he warned, you could use some spikes to make use of the computer or you could repair the droid."

He chose to save his spikes and reprogram the droid. He programed it into patrol mode and left the room so it could take care of business. All Kaleb heard was rapid blaster shots and anguished screams. As soon as the smoke cleared and the screaming stopped he went in.

" Whew", he whistled, " I got to remember to stay out of droids way when they're programed to kill."

He looted everybody and opened the door.

" Good you finally made it, I couldn't have waited much longer. Bastila's escape pod is away so there's no reason to stay on the ship any longer."

" You don't have to tell me twice!", Kaleb exclaimed rushing to the escape pod.

As they whizzed past the Endire Spire, it blew up behind them almost catching them in the explosion, but still effecting the stability of the escape pod.

" Hold on!",Carth yelled, " This is gonna be rough!" Kaleb was clutching his seat while thinking that it had started out as such a promising day too.

The End

Well that's the first chapter! Hope you enjoyed it and don't worry the next chapters will be much longer. Ok I revised this one too, so tell me how like it now!


	2. Not Getting Any Better

How bout that second chapter! Anyway this one is gonna jump because to tell you the truth I don't feel like writing everything that happened on Taris, what do I look like a game maker? And I did tell you that we would skip to the good parts. Thanks everybody who reviewed me( I won't put any names because everybody who reviewed me is equal in the gratitude), and yes I will fix the spacing issue and the paragraphs. I'm sorry, no excuses, lets just get down to it, my writing program is old and I've never even heard of it until now. Oh and didn't you just hate when the characters stated the obvious, lets just say they won't get away with it in this story and when droids speak it will be italic. Soooo... right, this one will also be longer and funnier(if you can imagine that) and there will be descriptive writing on this one so again enjoy and review. Thanks!

Oh and I read my other reviews, thanks for the constructive criticism and I don't take it the wrong way. If it helps me out why should I? But anyway I re-re-did it and I think I got it right this time, so if I didn't tell me.

Wow, and that's how it started, Kaleb thought.

He was in the newly " acquired" Ebon Hawk on the supposed jedi planet of Dantoinne trying to figure out how it got to this point. He remembered that he was unconscious and Carth had told him he was thrashing in his sleep and he believed him because he remembered those nightmares clearly enough. He saw this dark robed figure with a mask and a lightsaber that was as dark as blood itself. But Taris wasn't all bad, they did meet a lot of their new companions: Mission, Zalbaar, Canderous, and a droid.

" The Council is waiting for you Kaleb." Bastila said sternly.

Ok now that was the Ice Queen herself in all her glory. I mean the girl I met in the dueling ring who was named after Ice, had nothing-**nothing** on her. As soon as he had meet her it had been a disaster. Of course after he just risked his life in a unstable swoop it wasn't like he wanted a kiss and a million credits and **excuse the hell out me if I just wanted a SIMPLE THANK YOU! **But nooooooo he got that smartass explanation.

And I quote " Save me, is that what you what you were trying to do?" "Well so far you've done a pretty poor job."

And you would think that she would've made her point, but did she stop- two guesses.

" I managed to stop the Vulkers by myself as I recall despite your so called attempt to " save me".

And what did I do? I was the perfect gentlemen about the whole situation.

" Woah, I think you got things confused, you were a helpless prisoner until I came along!"

Hey now we're gonna have fun. Is it A. Degrade me even more, B. Say something sarcastic, or C. Hurt my pride and self-esteem in the same process. Times up, how about D, all of the above.

" Helpless, maybe you've heard of a little thing called the "Force". " Actually if I wasn't here you probably would have died."

Alright I'm sorry pause, for a jedi she sure has anger control issues. Anyway resume.

" I didn't need your help against them", Kaleb yelled obviously irritated, " I can take care of myself!"

See perfect gentlemen.

" Kaleb!"

"What!"

" Did you not here me announce that the Council has asked for your presence?"

" Oh yeah... No I didn't hear you, but don't feel bad, I'm sure everybody else did.", he replied ignorantly smiling like there was no tomorrow.

Bastila was just glared at him and muttered something under her breath about no emotion and peace.

Sorry folks we're going to have to get back to that later before she makes a new way for me to eat with her lightsaber.

" Alright, alright I'm coming."

" Hopefully", she added nastily," The Council will reconsider their decision considering the amount of time you made them wait."

Oh so she wants to play, he thought. " Thanks for the concern, but I'm not worried because unlike you they mastered the art of patience."

Even she had to shut up from that one, but she still didn't relieve him of a stare so cold that even he got chills. If looks could kill, he would have been dead a long time ago.

As soon as they reached the Enclave, Bastila went ahead and told him to follow her. A Twi-lek stopped him at the entrance.

" Hello, I'm sorry, but I didn't know that the Council was recruiting anyone."

" Oh I don't know either, I just came here with Bastila", Kaleb stated.

" I have heard of this human, they say she is an adept jedi. I'll assume that she rescued you from the destruction of Taris?"

" Get your facts straight, she didn't save me from anything- I saved her!"

" Is that so?" "Well excuse me for the wrong information and have a nice stay at the Enclave." He went inside happy that he was able to correct the story about Taris, but then he was stopped by another person. Oh what now, he thought.

" I see that the force flows through you strongly. Why are then not wearing the customary robes of the Jedi?"

" Okay look lady, Kaleb stated trying to get out of this conversation as fast as it began, " I'm not a Jedi-yet", he added.

" You should not be so confident in your abilities, you have been neglecting your studies." " If this is a jest, it is poor in favor." , she added with resolution.

" Miss I'm not a Jedi, unfortunately I came here with Bastila who right now is making my life a living hell."

" I have heard of this Bastila, they saw she has mastered the art of Battle Mediation, astounding in one so young, but that she also has a foolish pride in her own abilities." Well at least these Jedi got something right, arrogant didn't do her justice, he thought.

" I am sorry, my master tells me that I need to control my temper" " Have a restful stay here at the Jedi Academy."

Trying to find any way possible to get out of this meeting and failing miserably, he forced himself to the place where Bastila ran to. He saw Carth right before he was about to go in and mouthed the words 'help me'. Carth mouthed back ' I'm sorry' as he walked in.

" So explain something to me", Kaleb started directing his question to his new bond-mate.

" You make it sound so very easy."

" You know what Bastila, stop acting like such a-"

" So", Carth interjected just in time before Kaleb had said something rude, " What's inside these ruins anyway?"

" I don't know Carth", Kaleb replied slightly mad that he didn't let him finish what he wanted to say, "lets ask the mighty and all-knowing Bastila."

Oh no here they go again, Carth thought. He couldn't quite figure out if they like each other or if they wanted to kill each other in their sleep.

" Kaleb, just because of the fact that somebody is smarter than you'll ever be doesn't mean that they know everything."

Kaleb just walked faster so that he could get this over with and Bastila, with a satisfied look on her face, walked at the same pace.

" Hey Bastila do you have to be so hard on him?"

" Carth you know as well as I that he starts these petty arguments."

He gave her a disbelieving look

" What!", she answered not understanding why she was the one being chastised, " I am supposed to let him get his way every time he throws a fit!"

" He just wanted to ask a question."

She suddenly felt guilty while he continued.

" I didn't catch anything really, but it looks like you're supposed to help him, so no matter what you feel about him, you two need to complete this mission together."

He started to walk ahead so that he could catch up with Kaleb. She didn't want to admit that she had been wrong, but she was a Jedi, she had to be above such things.

She sighed heavily, "I guess I should go apologize."

Then it hit her.

" Wait!" "Carth what did you mean when you said no matter what I feel about him?"

Carth just kept walking smiling to himself because he finally knew the answer to his question.

" Why is she so-arg!", he groaned.

He had never had this problem with women before because-come on let's be honest he was nowhere near ugly. His hair, dirty blond, was perfectly even and so was his little slice of beard on his chin, which was of course perfect too. He knew that he had a great figure, all muscle, but what really sealed the deal was his light brown almost golden eyes that had specks of blue and his smile. Now he wasn't bragging, but just stating facts. Even when they were on Taris the girls couldn't keep their hands off of him... especially after his big win against Bendak Starkiller. A lot of people thought he did it for the credits, which was right,but he also did it because Bendak was killing too many people. But not only was he the all time champion of the dueling ring, but being a whizz at pazzak and swoop racing only helped things.

It was like something wanted him to win and he did wonder if it was the Force, but ultimately thought it was his doing. But no Bastila was different and it was like she was immune to his charm because she was a jedi, but then she was pissed off at him for herself not having enough control. It wasn't his fault that she found him attractive, few didn't and those people who did were just jealous.

Than an evil thought came to him, " That's it!", he exclaimed with a mischievous smile.

He had found it out, he felt like a rancor for not seeing this sooner.

Alright stay with me here, she likes me so that's why she's pretending not to like me so I won't like her so I'll treat her badly and then she can get over her feelings for me!( Simple,no?)

" That has to be it."

" So she thinks that she can get rid of me that easily huh? Get ready Bastila because I'm going to have fun with this one!"

" Okay can we finish this now?", he asked Carth, who was behind him, as reached the ruin's door.

" You know we have to wait for Bastila, but while we're doing that why did the council you and her on this mission together and why did they make you a jedi?"

" Well aren't you full of questions, he responded chuckling, " To tell you the truth, Carth, I'm starting to think that the council is crazy because they said that me and Bastila have a bond."

" A bond, you two? Well I find that hard to believe."

Kaleb scoffed "You're not the only one."

" So", Carth went on, " Does that mean that you're joined with her somehow?"

" That seems to be the gist of it and from what the council said it's supposed to be " near physical", he said with a little smile.

" And why are you in such a great mood?"

" No reason in particular."

He wasn't quite ready to tell him his discoveries yet, he first had to find out if he was right himself. " Well you still haven't told me why they made you a Jedi?"

" I don't really know." " They kept saying I was a special case and after I saved Juhani they really didn't get back into it...hmm."

" What is it?"

" Huh?-oh nothing, here she comes took her long enough."

" Why are you two just standing here-lets go!" Bastila acting as if she just hadn't delayed them went inside.

Both of them stared at her like she was crazy.

" She's a trip", Kaleb said shaking his head," How am I going to survive this mission?"

Carth just shrugged, happy as all get out that he didn't have a bond with her.

" Well at least it's not dark and scary."

Kaleb was surprised when Bastila didn't say anything.

" Well lets go in."

Carth tried not to smile as he followed her in.

"Wait, ok now she's changing the rules.", he said to himself not being able to help but be enticed by this new challenge.

" Bring it on."

He started to follow them inside the deeper parts of the ruins.

The first thing that caught his eyes was a, he assumed deactivated, droid and Nemo's body. Readying his lightsaber for any dangers that would come his way, he slowly approached the droid. As if like clockwork, it came to life and started speaking and incomprehensible language. " What is this!" " Hey droid! I can't understand you!"

The droid suddenly changed its language again as if understanding him, but it was still as difficult as the first. " The stupid droid must be broken.", he concluded as he went to gather Nemo's remains.

" Do you always give up so easily?"

Kaleb smiled at her, " Only if its something I don't want."

She ignored him, " The droid seems to be using a different amount of dialects every time it spoke. It can probably understand us though."

" Well now that Bastila has explained the situation, he mocked with a fake happiness, everything will be A-ok!", he concluded with a thumbs-up sign.

" Not that I enjoy your oh-so-engaging dialogue at any other time, but can you please focus?"

She's back, he thought, I knew she couldn't resist for long.

" Oh I can focus just fine Bastila, like right now for example that droid is speaking a language that I can finally understand."

She turned to it and sure enough it was speaking a recognizable language.

" It seems to be an archaic form of Selkath with originated on Mannan, but how would the droid have knowledge of this?"

_I can reproduce any of the languages of the slaves of the Builders._

" Slaves of the Builders?" " Who are these Builders?", Kaleb questioned getting serious.

_The Builders are the unopposed rulers of the galaxy, the infinite of power and excellence. _" These " Builders" must have been a dominate force, but there is no mention of this in the Archives."

" Maybe the Sith are the Builders."

" I doubt it, but you might be right."

" Why do you automatically have to be right and I get a maybe?" Kaleb challenged.

She sighed, " Do you have to oppose everything I say to you!"

" No-but you make it so easy.", he smirked

The droid interrupted her before she could say anything.

_These sith you speak of are not the Builders. The builders are unparalleled and creators of the Star Forge-. _

" What is this " star forge"?", Kaleb stopped him before he could go on about his beloved Builders.

_The Star Forge is a spectacle of light, the apex of the Builders creations that provides unlimited power and resources. _

" Thanks for the dramatics, but do you mind being a little more specific."

Kaleb was already irritated from this droid and it wasn't really helping itself by being an actor.

_T-The Star Forge is a spectacle of light, the apex of the Builders creations that provides unlimited power and resources. _

" Well it is obvious that the droid is not programed with the information we seek, ask him something else Kaleb he seems to respond to you." " Aww, are we having trouble getting information from the droid Bastila?", Kaleb replied with a baby voice while Carth was suppressing a laugh.

" You can do it, yes you can!"

" No I am not having trouble!", she snapped at him " I simply picked up that the droid responds to you better."

She was clearly frustrated at him, but he clearly didn't care and he was enjoying this too much to back down now.

" Of course the droid does-I mean who wouldn't?"

Sensing that she was going to say something particularly nasty, he wrapped it up, "-but let me get to the interrogation before you go nuclear on us."

He directed his attention back to the droid, " So droid, why did Malak and Revan come here?" _The ones that came before, not Builders but not slaves either, but like you_ _had to prove themselves worthy. _

He sighed deeply," How do I prove myself worthy?", he said annoyed.

_You will have to go to the doors on the east and the west sides, but if you are not worthy, you will share a fate similar to the human who came before. _Once again stating what was apparent Bastila replied, " It must be talking about poor Nemo."

"Did you kill the Jedi over there?",Kaleb asked putting his hand back on the hilt of his lightsaber.

_No I did not harm the one you speak of. I do not have offensive capabilities, but these ruins have their own defenses._

" Well I think that's all we need to know. Let's prove ourselves worthy and see what's behind door number three."

" That's the plan.", Carth said as they walked through the door

" Whew that was harder than I thought it would be, but I could handle it."

Again not bragging-facts.

" Yes, it was quite impressive when you were frozen by the droids ice beam."

" Yeah it was " quite impressive", he mocked her using her accent, " it was almost as impressive as when that other droid flamed you.", he said with his trademark ignorant grin.

" Okay kids, lets just get through the last door", Carth refereed, " We all got our share of hurt with those droids and luckily we figured out how to break those seals."

" I know one thing, I will not kick any computers from now on-shut-up Bastila."

" What I was just going to say that you're a genius."

Carth gave her a look as he followed Kaleb into the room.

" Hey man don't let her get to you sh-."

" Get to me!", he looked at him, " Don't worry she won't she's just mad because she has finally met her match and she can't stand it."

Carth couldn't believe the guts this man had or it could be foolish cockiness, but either way you had to respect the guy for it. Bastila caught up as they approached the mechanism. When they got close enough it whirred ,hissed ,and clicked itself to life.

As it opened a holographic map came out of it. "This seems to be an incomplete map of some sort."

" Ok, did they teach you to how to state the painfully obvious at the Enclave or is that all you?" She ignored him, but didn't miss Carth giving him a high five.

" Is it too much too ask- wait of course it is."

"Anyway", she continued not being able to help the smile on her lips when she saw Kaleb's face, "these have to be a part of what Revan and Malak discovered."

" But what good is a incomplete map?", he asked

" I was thinking the same thing, but these other planets must contain more pieces of this puzzle. I know for a fact that they went to Korriban at least once."

" That's quite an assumption Bastila, what if you're wrong?", Carth asked unsure.

" And what if I'm right, either way we must inform the Council immediately."

" Well whatever we do, I just want to get out of here and relax." He stretched out his limbs, " and don't even try to say you're not tired because those bag under your eyes and your mind says differently.

" I do not have bags under my eyes and have you been reading my mind-"

" Alright before things start to get ugly in here, I'm gonna go." As Carth reached the door he concluded " You two kiss and make up now!"

" So now that we're alone and we're done with this mission, will you answer my question now?" "Please?", he added to gain some leverage.

She rolled her eyes, " Go ahead, but after this I have some questions for you also."

" Thanks", he said with a smile. " I still don't understand this bond of ours, I mean sometimes I can hear little tibets of what you are thinking, but I still don't get the nature of the bond itself."

She could sense that he was really concerned about the issue, so she answered him.

" So you want to know about this bond and how we received it in the first place?"

He wanted to say duh, that's what I asked, but then she might not answer his questions

"To the first I can only repeat what the Council said, we are joined and we have to finish this mission together." " To the second I truly don't know, believe me I don't find the prospect of being joined with you enjoyable in the least."

He scoffed, " Oh believe me the feeling is mutual-I've never met somebody so uptight."

" Well the sooner we complete this mission the sooner we can go our separate ways no?"

" Aww now Bastila why would I ever want to leave you?"

He couldn't have been sure because the room was so poorly lit, but he could have sworn that she blushed.

" Yes...,well, I'll assume that you are finished with your questions and now I would still like to ask some of my own."

"Shoot."

" These are just simple questions, nothing to intrusive."

" You want to know more about me, he smirked, its understandable."

" First we are you from?"

" Deralia, its in a remote system-why?"

" Good, what do you do for a living?"

" I'm a soldier nothing too extravagant."

" Excellent, and you're current age is?"

" Isn't all this in my service records?"

" Well yes, but I was evaluating the way you answered the questions instead of the questions themselves."

" Oh so you were giving me a pop quiz? Well since I already know that I passed, why did you do it."

" I was testing your character, and considering that you answered truthfully that means that you have a good one and that you take the situation seriously, which it is."

" Oh wow, I think that's the first compliment you've ever given me since I met you, unless that wasn't a compliment?"

" N-no it was, she quickly went into mentor mode, but don't let it go to you're head. Overconfidence can lead to the dark side."

" Oh no!", he joked, " It's corrupting and twisting me from the inside because I made a joke." "The dark side is no joke!", she responded with fire in her eyes, " It is everything we must fight against and we must do everything in our power to guard against it."

" Oh come on you're not mad at me already are you?" " Loosen up."

" I am a Jedi, I have no need for your childishness, especially when the galaxy is at stake!"

" Oh just throw that in my face, why don't you?"

Bastila groaned in exasperation, " Let's just get to the Council, I'm sure Carth is also tired of waiting for us."

" Hey one more question alright?", he begged her.

" What is it now?"

" I can read your mind, but only when you display great emotion, like for example when you're yelling at me for no apparent reason, but when you aren't it's like your emotions are different colors of force." " So I was just wondering if you had that ability with me?"

" Well I thought that would have been apparent by now, but to answer you're question I would think so, yes."

" You would think so, he repeated not buying it, so you've never tried to read my mind?"

" Of course not, I myself don't have enough leisurely time for that."

Riight, even she had to wonder once in a while, he thought.

" No I do not have to wonder! Now lets go!"

" Hey" " I thought you didn't have time to read my brain." he said with a knowing smile.

" I have no idea what you're talking about, so stop dawdling because we're already late."

" Whatever"

The End

Well that's the second chapter, hope you like it! It's starting to get interesting now, huh? Oh sorry for the lack of combat, but when I'm reading stories those parts always bore me unless its really good, but I'll have some in there at some point...


	3. Relaxation

I'm loving the love that I'm getting for this story. Thanks everybody for the helpfulness! You know I'm feeling this story too, because you know when read what you wrote and you're like hey who woulda thunk that I could write like that. But enough with the lovey dovey stuff, lets review. So if you've hadn't figured this out yet, Kaleb is, I like to classify, a doesn't-know-when-to-give-up kind of boy. He is laid back and a flirt, but even though he's sexy he's not cocky about.( Except with Bastila because it makes her mad) But you'll see in later chapters that he can be companionate about things, he just choose's not to. In this chapter though, he just kinda wants to relax before they set off to do this great mission. There is a kinda moment with him and Bastila, but its not anything serious, but it progresses the story. Oh and we're gonna have some POV's from Bastila about Kaleb! How bout it! And of course I'm there with the funny.Review please and as always enjoy!

" Well now that we can leave and start this mission, I think I'm gonna relax before we go."

Kaleb was in his big shared room in the back of the ship. Even though he had two other people who stayed there, Carth and Canderous, they hardly ever slept. Carth was always doing something in the front, calculating routes and stuff like that and Canderous was forever tinkering with things; trying to make this armor tougher or this weapon stronger. He sat up in his bed not being able to sleep.

" I have to admit that I'm going to miss this planet.", he stated with remorse, but then he smiled. " I don't think anybody will mind if I go out on the courtyard one last time."

He sneaked out of the room looking around corners to see if anyone was still awake. Canderous was still up, but he was too preoccupied to notice him. He slowly walked past him and made his way to the loading ramp to get one last look at Dantoinne at night.

" And were do you think you're going at this time at night?"

" Oh Gamorean dung!" He sighed " Hey Bastila", he chuckled nervously, " I was just going to the Enclave to read up on those- um... jedi policies, yeah that's it."

She raised her eyebrow," You're a terrible liar, the Force around you is so erratic that I'm surprised you don't feel it."

" Stupid force giving me away.", he mumbled. " Alright, Alright", he surrendered, " I'm really going to the courtyard since this is the last time we're going to be here for a while.

She gave him a disbelieving look.

" No really I'm not lying this time, I just want to see the night time view of this planet." " But", he gave her a suspicious look, " why are you up?"

" I am up because you woke me.", she replied bluntly, " You're scuffling around the ship was hard to ignore."

" Yeah I never was a sneaky person.", he admitted

As if reading her mind he said, " You can come with me if you want." " If you're so worried about me.", he added with his signature ignorant grin.

" I am not worried about you at all!", she declared.

" Is that right...hmm...oh well sorry for waking you."

Ok, now quick review that was a little reverse psychology for her. If I know anything about her by now is that she has too much pride for her own good. Now she's probably going to think that I won and want to go outside with me, which is exactly what I'm hoping for because am I right or am I right about starry, quiet nights being romantic. So again this will be the perfect time to make her admit that she likes me. Wish me luck!

" Oh no, you are not going to endanger me with your reckless behavior and besides you woke me up in the first place so you owe me this little trip!"

Ten points for me.

" Whatever you want, but I'm gonna try and make it out there before the sun comes up."

As she and Kaleb was walking toward the courtyard, she couldn't help but notice how attractive he was and his exceptional body composition. She knew that she was a Jedi and that she shouldn't have been looking, but she was a woman after all. She knew that she was hard on Kaleb, but he was just so irritating sometimes. He was never serious about anything and he was relentlessly sarcastic to her, she looked at him, but why did he have to be so handsome? As she was thinking, she noticed a smirk on his face.

" Is something amusing?"

" Uh-uh, unless you consider you staring at me funny, but seriously do you see anything you like?"

" You have to be the vainest, most arrogant person I have ever met!"

" Well of course I am if you've only been hanging around other jedi, but I'm just asking a honest question here. You were staring at me so clearly I thought you found something you liked and I wanted to know what it was", he said smiling at her.

" I was not staring at you!", she said getting mad, " I am a jedi and I would never show such outward displays of expression." " My thoughts remain hidden, including whatever I feel about you- I-I mean whatever I think about you.", she stuttered

" Bastila you just don't know how cute you are when you're embarrassed."

She groaned, " Why must you be so positively infuriating, I just wanted to go to the courtyard, but you won't even let me do that!"

" Woah why are you getting so mad at me? You're the one who said you felt something for me, so why don't you just admit that you like me?"

" I will admit nothing because there is nothing to admit", she told him with finality, " now can we please just continue with what we were doing."

" Hey, I'm sorry for making you feel uncomfortable, he saw the look on her face, so I'll just shut-up now."

She kept walking with her arms crossed and still didn't say anything to him.

" So I'm gonna lay in the grass and I would fell considerably better if I wasn't alone.", he looked at her patting the grass giving the saddest face he could muster.

She rolled her eyes, " Oh stop it, you look pathetic.", she told him as she sat down beside him

" I was going for little child abandoned at the cantina, but I'll take pathetic."

He felt a warm breeze as he looked up at the night sky filled with stars.

" It's beautiful isn't it?", he asked her

" Yes it is", she answered in awe, " I haven't just looked at the sky without expecting danger since I was very little."

" Yeah, well today at least, you don't have to worry about that." He then smiled at her, " You can come closer, I don't bite-unless you ask me to."

" You just always have to ruin everything don't you?"

" What?" " It was obvious that you were thinking about it so acted."

" Obvious, I am not obvious!"

" So you weren't thinking about us being alone-completely by ourselves-at night, where its dark-dark enough, mind you, for you to take advantage if me in a dirty and savage-"

**THUMP**

She had force pushed him over a hill before he could finish and got up and left for the ship.

" Ouch!", he saw her leaving and got up, " Hey don't be mad at me because of your amorous intentions!", he yelled at her. She had reached the Enclave door and closed it without looking back.

" Oh come on!" "Things were just starting to get interesting!"

Bastila went into her room, mad in ways she couldn't even understand, about Kaleb's perverted ways. He was supposed to be a Jedi, but he acted nowhere near it. He let his emotions rule his actions and never held anything back. These were of course sure signs of the dark side, but the strangest thing was that she didn't detect it in him...except what was left of R-.

/ Hey Bastila don't be mad at me, I was just joking alright-unless you do want to do that in which I clearly wouldn't object, but anyway isn't this cool! I found a way to talk to you through our bond and-/

/ What don't you understand Kaleb, she exclaimed in his head/ It's bad enough talking to you in the physical sense so what makes you think I want you in my head/

/ I said I was sorry and I truly am., he surrendered/ You haven't been this mad at me since I got that massage back at Davik's place./

/ I was not mad, I simply thought it inappropriate for you and Canderous to do such with are current situation./

/ You don't have to get jealous about stuff like that, you know you're the only one for me/

She was taken off guard by his comment. Was he being serious or was this another one of his jokes?

/ But I got to admit that massage was good and I was so relaxed-/

/ You're incorrigible, do you know that, she spat at him and forced him out of her mind.

Why did he always get her so riled up when they talked? She shouldn't have let such foolish emotions get to her that much, but he had an effect on her that was bittersweet. He was someone she could talk to; like she had known him forever sometimes, but then he would act like a little boy and irk the Force out of her. And that smile of his was so cocky like he knew that he was already winning.

" Wait", she suddenly said out loud, " Do I notice him that much?" I mean he wasn't bad to look at, but she was studying his reactions. She had a headache and she just wanted to go to sleep. She turned off her light.

" Well she didn't have to push me out", he said rubbing his head, " I would have left if she asked."

As he expected it was just as peaceful at night as it was in the daytime, except for now the kath hounds were asleep. His mind wondered to this whole jedi business, I mean he knew something was up, but he didn't want to say something without proof. Even Carth had doubted the council's decision, which isn't saying much because of his trusting issues, but still the question remained of why. He was twenty-one which wasn't old, but apparently it was too old for jedi training. He remembered when Bastila first saw signs of the force in him.

" Ok Bastila if you have something to say, say it!", he told her still irritated that she didn't properly thank him for risking his life and rescuing her.

" We I was just curious about what you did before I came."

" Before I rescued you, you mean.", he reiterated just to piss her off

" I freed myself from that neural disrupter by myself as I recall.", she rebutted

" You didn't escape the Black Vulkers until I helped as I recall.", he mocked her, " Why can't you just admit that you were rescued? Do you have that much pride?"

" I am not being prideful, but I am just stating facts!" " I will admit, if not for your diversion, I probably wouldn't have escaped, I should thank you for that I suppose." " You also managed to find out where I was, infiltrate the Vulkar base, and win the swoop race season opener; thats a pretty extensive resume." "But I won't deny that you've impressed me with what you've done."

" Oh great!", he replied sarcastically, " Now that I've impressed you I can die happy!" " But you know, he added, " You did forget the part were I rescued the damsel in distress."

" Yes, well I wouldn't consider myself a damsel in distress, I am a Jedi after all." " A jedi could have done such things, but only by relying heavily on the force." " If you were well-younger the council might consider you for jedi training, but as it is..."

" Be glad that I'm "force sensitive" or I couldn't have rescued you.", he told her ignorantly because she had just called him old.

" Ah yes the rescue again-fine-I will concede the point to you", she droned, " you rescued me from Brejick-"

" Yes, yes, you admitted it!" " Hey Carth did you hear that because I'm gonna need a witness and somebody to mark this day down. Bastila finally said that I rescued her!"

" Are you quite done?", she asked him, her voice strained with anger because he was starting to attract a crowd.

" Nope, one more thing!" " You loss, I won, na na na na boo boo!", he taunted her.

He took a deep breath of air and exhaled.

" Ok, he smiled, now I'm done."

Carth had tears in his eyes from laughing so hard.

" Now that you've had your fun", she told him with obvious disdain, " we need to find a way off of Taris."

" Yeah that was a good day.", he said laughing as he reminisced. He sighed " Well I guess I should head to the ship before she gets too worried about me."

He smiled as he saw the sun coming up in the horizon and headed back to the ship.

THE END

Well I know that its short, but I wanted a brief chapter on what happened before they left. Next chapter is gonna be a long one though and we're going to Kashyyyk!


	4. First Mission!

Well I finally have time to write this fourth chapter. Sorry people I've been busy all month. Who woulda thunk that Iwould have a life?Again thanks to the people who gave the encouraging reviews, but what's up with the rest of you. I mean I'm not trying to sound ignorant, but I saw how many hits( 339 to be exact) this story is getting and nobody but six people can write back. Some of you might not take this seriously, but for you to read long chapters and not be able to review once, what's the problem? It might be, I don't know, a motivation to keep writing more chapters. I mean come on don't be lazy! Anyway this chapter is dedicated to the to thesix people who reviewed me and helped me become better.

The next two chapters will be about going to Kashyyyk and their will be a lot of progression toward Kaleb and Bastila. ( wink wink) And I have a treat for you action fans because there will be some fighting scenes. Oh and the Wookies dialogue will be in bold.

Chapter 4

Kaleb woke up after having the strangest vision. They were going to Kashyyyk so he knew it had to be connected to there somehow. He got out of his bunk and stretched his limbs.

" Mmm, it's always a good morning after you stretch.

He noticed that Canderous and Carth were already up, but not really caring because he was a late sleeper. He sighed heavily knowing that he was delaying the inevitable.

" Lets go see how Queenie's doing."

As soon as he left his room he spotted Mission, Carth, and Zalbaar eating breakfast.

" Hey sleepy head", Mission greeted him playfully, " took you long enough, we thought that you were unconscious for a while."

" Yup, I have to have my sleep or I can't function."

" So we're almost at Kashyyyk", Carth reminded him, " do you think that we'll find those Star Maps?"

" I don't know, but I had a vision that it was on the forest floor.", Kaleb answered him while he was searching for some sugar for his coffee.

Picking up on Zalbaar's reclusiveness to join the discussion he added, " Hey Zalbaar isn't Kashyyyk your home world?"

" **Yes, I was hoping to avoid this, but even I knew that I could not run away from this forever." **

" How do you feel about going back there?"

" **Outsiders are not welcome on my place of birth and you are outsiders, this angers me." **

" Hey Big Z don't worry about it, whatever you were running from is probably forgotten about now."

" **I have little hope**."

Kaleb decided to drink his coffee in his room thinking that the Wookie needed to be alone with his thoughts, but when he turned the corner, he could sense something really close to anger, impatience, and some other emotion that was blurred to him.

" Bastila what are you doing inside my room?", Kaleb asked as he came inside

" I could have sworn that this was Carth and Canderous's room also."

He sighed, " Ok, what are you doing in the boys room?"

" I came here to discuss the vision we had."

" Oh right the one with the trees and the darkness- what about it?"

" Is it possible for you to take one thing seriously?"

" Nope", he told her smugly as he sat down on his bunk blowing of the steam coming from the coffee " but you go ahead and be serious to heart's content while I drink my coffee."

" The vision we saw was clearly showing us the Star Map located on Kashyyyk, but were could it be located?"

He took a long, loud sip of his drink.

" Mmm...ahh... I don't know it looked like it was on the forest floor.", he replied being nonchalant

" Only the bravest of the Wookies dare to enter the lower depths so I doubt that they were involved."

" Hey speaking of Wookies, Zalbaar looked kinda worried so I think that he should accompany us. If I was on my home planet I wouldn't want to be on this ship."

" Well I guess that will be alright- as long as you don't forget the mission.", she added hastily.

" Look Bastila, I know that you're really stuck-up on this mission, but our companions are human...err...mostly- so we have to relax once in a while too."

" Maybe you don't understand how important this mission is! We have to defeat Malak, she told him while his voice was rising, there are no if, ands, or buts about it."

" You know what your problem is", he said smiling suggestively, " you need to relax." " You can take a nap in my bed if that will make you happy."

" Y-y-your so-ugh."

" Yeah I have that effect on people, but I would really like to know more about you."

She rolled her eyes, " Well considering our bond I guess I can see why you're curious- very well I will tell you a little about myself."

" Great! tell me about when you became a jedi then."

" It's nothing special really, I was found to be strong in the force at a young age, as most jedi are, and I was recruited on my home of Talravin to go to the Enclave."

" So the jedi separates children from their families?"

" A child is too young to understand this concept, but I started to understand the wisdom of this as I grew."

" You don't miss your family at all?", he asked her in disbelief.

" I remember when I was taken away I missed my father terribly, but I wasn't on good terms with the rest of my family."

" So you and your father were close?", Kaleb inferred

" Very close." " He doted on me and I loved him very much."

" Who weren't you on good terms with?"

" I wasn't on good terms with my mother. She whittled away my father's fortune for her own selfish greed. She forced my father to go on dangerous treasure hunts and I hated her for it."

" Hmm, you never tried to contact them?", he questioned taking another swig of his coffee.

" No, emotional entanglements are to be avoided- anger, jealously, but even love can lead to folly."

Kaleb almost choked on his coffee and looked at her like she was crazy. If she couldn't feel love then she would never admit that she had feelings for him and that would mess up his plan. He had to stop this.

" Bastila you're not a droid, and even if you are a jedi, you're still human. You can't honestly tell me that you no longer feel love!

He had scared himself at the amount of conviction he had in his voice. Bastila had turned away from him and talked in a low voice.

" That is the price of being a Jedi, the alternative would be to fall prey to the dark side."

" I don't buy this whole light-side dark-side crap!" " I just think that you should live you're life the way you want to right!"

She was silent, but felt his eyes burning on her back.

" No I don't accept that because even you don't sound convinced.", he told her with finality

" Not even a Jedi can fully can control the matters of the heart...please I don't want to discuss this anymore."

And just for a split second he could feel an overpowering sadness coming out of her. It was so intense that it just filled your senses and took hold of your emotions. He couldn't believe that she had carried this anguish all of the time. He had experienced it only once, but he never wanted to feel that way again.

" Bastila...what's wrong with you?", he asked with true sincerity forgetting all about the game.

By this time she had pulled herself together.

" Nothing is wrong. I'm fine Kaleb.", was replied with clear resolution, " but thank you.", she added when she noted his concern as she left the room.

" I never that she held that in."

It was like through their bond he experienced it like it was his own. Maybe he should be easier on her from now on.

" But she's not going to change me into some emotionless monster either.", he said to himself being stubborn. That's probably why she feels like that, she doesn't vent. I tell you she's something else , she knows that she's destroying herself and yet she helps other people instead."

He suddenly reached out to her again and felt the same pain, but weaker. He sighed.

" She's so stupid..."

She was elated that she had escaped Kaleb in time before he could feel anything else through their bond. She had tried to close her emotions out, but she had lost her control when he asked her about love. He said that he wasn't convinced by her answer, but could he see through her so clearly? She was frightened by this thought. If he could sense that... could he sense her deception about his true identity. To tell the truth he was still as brash and prideful as ever, but it was like he refused to be classified in a group. Despite all of this though, he still had that irresistible charisma that made you want to just tell him everything she knew... but no she had accepted this mission and her success would mean the protection of everything she wanted to preserve. She was emotionally drained so she decided to meditate.

" No emotion...peace."

She exhaled and closed her eyes .

" Hey there it is!", Kaleb exclaimed when he had saw Kashyyyk's surface, " Our first mission...lets do it!" " Hey Zalbaar don't be sad buddy you're going to see your family again.", he reassured him.

He just growled sadly and went to the loading ramp.

He shook his head, what could have happened to him to make him so reluctant to visit his home. Well, he thought, there's only one way to find out.

" Hey! Has anyone seen Bastila?"

He spotted Juhani in her usual place looking lonely

" Hey Juhani have you seen Bastila, we need to get going."

" I wish I could help you, but I do not know where Bastila resides.", she replied solemnly

" Juhani don't worry about falling to the dark side", he told her as if reading her mind, " I'm sure you have enough control."

" I have to disagree, last time I did not have enough control so what will prevent me from slipping again?"

" I'm not really into the whole sides thing, but if I see you turn all grey and scaly I'll personally intervene. Now come on smile a little-we got to have fun on this little mission of ours or we'll all go crazy.

He sensed the one he was searching for behind him he added smirking, " Especially with Bastila around."

" Oh you're so amusing, how ever do you do it?"

" Aww shucks", he answered her rubbing his chin, " I do what I can."

" I was being sarcastic."

" So what do you want a cookie?"

She glared at him with relentless spite , " Now that's sarcasm", he said smiling at her

He turned back to Juhani, " Don't forget to work on that smile ok?"

She nodded.

" Great, come on slowpoke, lets go."

" Slowpok- I am not slow!"

" Come on, a leg-tied space slug could move faster than you."

Their conversation faded as they walked toward the loading ramp.

Juhani finally smiled, " Thank you Kaleb.

As soon as they left the ship they were intercepted by a Ithordian who confronted them.

" I am sorry, but it seems that you're not on our docking schedule so you will have to pay a fee of 100 credits."

Kaleb looked at him suspiciously, " And what will we get for this 100 credits?"

" The immediate benefit would be to land on the planet Edean, but Cerka Corporation will provide you with any other information you might need."

" Hmm...well I don't have to pay the fee do I?", he told it in a trance-like state

" N-n-no you do not have to pay the fee."

He chuckled, " That just never gets old!"

Bastila put her head on her head and started shaking it.

" Welcome to Edean", the alien interjected, " I will answer any questions that you have."

" Yeah, why do you keep calling this place Edean because I this was Kashyyyk."

" Yes, the Wookies have named it Kashyyyk, but its serial name is Edean."

" Why would the Wookies allow you to change the name if their planet?"

" **What if they didn't have a choice? "**, Zalbaar questioned

" The leader of the Wookies is quite satisfied with the agreement we made."

" What kind of leader would sell out his own people?", Kaleb asked, anger straining his voice.

" I believe his name is Chundar."

" **Arrg, that is not a name that I wanted to hear."**

" Who is this Chundar that he speaks of Zalbaar?"

" **I will tell you nothing of this until I can deal with it myself." **

" So this so-called leader sells his own tribe as slaves?"

" Please I don't deal with them myself, that's another precinct."

" Oh, well isn't that just great for you? You get the spoils, but you don't have to get you're hands dirty." "But hold on this is the good part", Kaleb told him while his anger was steadily building, " You don't even have to try and help the Wookies once-and you know why! **Because it's not in your Precinct!**, he was now yelling at him.

/ Kaleb, Bastila called through their bond with a calm and steady voice/ I know how you feel, but you must control your emotions./

/ Why, he practically screamed at her/ They're selling Wookies as slaves Bastila! What would you do if you came to you're home planet and they were selling your people!

He scoffed/ Of all the people in the galaxy, I would have thought that you want to help out the most since you were held captive on Taris and knows what it's like to be treated like an animal./

/ How dare you even bring that up, she spat back at him/ You have no idea what it's like to have a neural disrupter on and then to be forced in a cage/

/ Your right Bastila, I don't, but I do know that I don't want any of these Wookies to experience that either./

He turned back to the alien.

" Why didn't you try to stop it!", he asked him just as menacingly as before.

" T-t-the leader agreed and said that we could use the animals-"

" **ANIMALS! WE ARE NOT ANIMALS!**", Zalbaar roared viciously

" Control you're pet...please", it begged with desperation

" Lets get this straight now, Zalbaar is and will never be my pet . Unlike you he has honor and has granted me a life debt."

The alien loosened up a little, " Ah a very difficult thing to stage, I commend you for it, so much easier than a restraining collar."

" **DO NOT DEMEAN THE LIFE DEBT, DO NOT!"**

" I suggest you stop talking before you get hurt and I assure you that I won't stop him."

Kaleb looked at the Wookie, " Zalbaar I am so sorry about this, but I swear to you that I will free your people.", he said to him with unwavering conviction.

" **Thank you Kaleb, **he replied calming down only because of him, **" but I do not know if anything can be done." **

" How you can even live with yourself everyday knowing the destruction that you've caused?", he glared at the alien with revulsion , " I wouldn't even piss in your direction."

He pushed past him while Zalbaar walked ahead, his mind clearly on other matters. As he picked up his pace so he keep up with the long strides that a Wookie took, Bastila stopped him obviously irritated.

" Why must you be so tenacious?", she proclaimed

" About what?", he returned while cleaning his ear out with his pinky.

" Abo- you know exactly what I'm talking about!", she bellowed at him.

" Hey calm down, what was it you were telling me about... oh yeah control your emotions."

" Do not lecture me about emotional control- you idiotic hypocrite."

" Woah! there's no need to use such big and hurtful words.", he joked

" I just don't understand you and you would think that our bond would let me comprehend you more."

He exhaled loudly, " I'm sorry Bastila, I know we should be looking for the Star Map, and will we find it, but I have to help Zalbaar with this-I swore that I would help, you wouldn't want me to break it would you?"

" Don't you put what you promised on me!"

Attempting to change the subject he interrupted her, " You should have seen how I acted when I found out that you were a slave."

She softened a little.

" I-I never properly thanked you for going through all those hardships to rescue me."

" Don't mention it, but could you answer something that has been bothering me fo a while."

" Yes?"

" Well I've been having a lot of visions of this Revan character and Carth told me that you killed him."

" I was with the strike team that apprehended him, yes, but we did not kill him. Our mission was to capture him alive if possible."

He was confused, "So who killed him then?"

" As I said we were there to capture him alive, the Jedi do not kill their prisoners , his own former apprentice was the one who fired the killing blow."

" Well that's one thing that I can agree with you and the jedi about, I don't think anybody deserves death no matter what they do or did."

" I'm impressed Kaleb, that was very Jedi-like of you."

" Well whatever", he walked toward Zalbaar caught off guard and embarrassed but not willing to show her, " like I wanna be like them."

She sighed heavily, Did he not want to be a Jedi that much?

" Zalbaar what's this?"

" I am trying to get to my village, but this outsider won't let me."

He looked up to see two men dressed in yellow Cerka uniforms.

" Hey you let me through this door, I have the right!", Kaleb exclaimed

" Hey I won't stop you", the older man replied, " but I have to warn you of the dangers behind this door because of some stupid policy.", he told him nastily

" Well thanks for the heart-warming concern, I feel much better now.", Kaleb wisecracked

" Hmmp- watch out for the kinrath, Wookies, and other creatures."

Curiosity getting the best of him he asked, " What do you know about the Wookies?"

" Why don't you tell me Wookie Lover, he threw back at him, " and when you ask them and they kill you, I'll fish your head out of the river and give you a nice burial."

" Cute", he told him sarcastically, " So why has your boss been turning them into slaves?"

" I don't know what you're talking about, but I say good riddance; I have no love for these animals, I saw one tear my partner to shreds."

Now knowing that it was a waste of time talking to him he replied, " Okay skip the dramatics and do you're job."

The man moved out of the way and he and his partner opened the door.

Kaleb smirked at him just to make him mad as they left through it.

As soon as they got on the walkway, they were attacked by kinraths.

" This should be easy!", Kaleb said as he ignited his sky-blue and purple lightsabers.

He forced jumped to the first one and instantly cut of his head.

" Exactly", he said to himself be cocky.

Suddenly a kinrath had scratched his back so hard that it went into his skin.

" Ugh, what the hell?"

He turned around just before the creature struck again and chopped of its claw with his saber. The kinrath screeched in pain and Kaleb seeing this as a window of opportunity jabbed his second saber in its mid-section and pulled it out just as quickly. The sabers sizzled from the kinrath's blood being on them when it dropped to the ground.

He had a big grin on his face.

" Whew this kinrath are scrappy! But again I-"

He suddenly felt sick to his stomach and he somehow knew that Bastila was hurt. He searched frantically and saw a kinrath had gotten on top of her scratching while she was trying to block him with her double bladed saber. He ran over to her.

Bastila groaned in pain when the kinrath had hit her face.

They had outnumbered her, by two, but she managed to kill one when the other pushed her on the ground and started to violently slash at any part of her body.

It then used both of its spinney legs to knock her lightsaber out of her hands. She was now defenseless and awaited the inevitable attack.

Kaleb threw his sabers at the creature, cementing to the wall. It was split into three parts that slid down when they melted from the intensity of the heat. He kneeled down beside her and saw that she had several gashes on her face and arms.

" Damn! He got you good Bastila"

" Would you just heal me instead of giving me a commentary on how I look!", she snapped at him

" Yes my Queen", he mock saluted.

He gently put his hands on her face and arm and felt the healing aura surround her. He finally saw her show a little smile because she had been alleviated from her pain. She was almost always mad at him and when she wasn't she still had a stern look on her face, but he thought it made her look even more beautiful because her smiles were so foreign to him.

" You should definitely smile more Bastila, it really accents your features."

She opened her eyes, " And what features would those be?"

" Well you could say that it lights up your whole face and makes your eyes look almost like a grayish-clear color... and other things..."

" And those other things would be?"

He smirked and stood up, " Its your body, you tell me." He extended his hand, "Here let me help you up."

She pushed it away.

" Oh please Kaleb, I am fully capable of getting up myself.", she told him as she stood up also

" Well excuse me for rescuing you-again-next time I'll let you fully rescue yourself.

" Thank you because I don't even know why you did it in the first place."

" Well I felt really sick and somehow knew that you were hurt and you are so I helped, its as simple as that."

She didn't want to admit to herself, but when he touched her face his hand was so warm an comforting and her heart started to beat faster too...

" And besides", he said giving her that smile that she hated, " that kinrath was on top of you and only I will get the honor of doing that."

She slapped him with all her might, " You impudent nerf-herder!" " What makes you think that I would even let you near me, she yelled at him hating him right now with a passion.

" Ouch,", he rubbed his cheek, " What? I was giving you a compliment.

She picked up her lightsaber and started walking.

" Bastila?... Aww come one Bastila I was just joking around."

She still didn't say anything to him.

He checked his supplies they only had two med packs and one advanced med pack.

He groaned he knew that I should've bought some more, but he was so mad at that Ithordian he hadn't been preoccupied with it. Seeing as Bastila was mad at him, this was going to be a long trip.

As they continued they had to fight more and more kinraths and shyrnocks.

Kaleb sighed, " This is starting to get irritating and boring really fast."

He sliced through another kinrath.

" Well luckily this mission was not assigned to amuse you."

" What? Did you just talk to me!", he said shocked

" I suggest you don't read too much into it."

" Right, its just that you can't stay mad at me for long.", he smiled

" You get a kick out of making me mad don't you?"

" You just don't know Bastila", he told her smiling even more, but then stopped immediately.

" Zalbaar stop-now", he told him in a very serious voice.

He did so without question.

" What is it?", she asked him

He put his hand up, " _Shhh_, _Bastila you stay here_.", he whispered, but was still stern

She usually would have objected, but the look on his face was so serious she complied.

He sneaked up ahead and saw three dark jedi around the corner.

/ There are three dark jedi here Bastila/

/ What? How did you know that/

/ I don't know, but we don't have enough med packs for all of us to get hurt so I'm going to go out there by myself; then if I get hurt I'll contact you or use an advanced med pack./

/ No! This is too dangerous, we should attack together/

/ Well you know I would love to execute that plan, but I don't have that much force left so I'm not going to risk it./ And you have to use yours to heal yourself and Zalbaar., he answered her before sh could argue.

/ Ok, she resigned, but be careful Kaleb./

/ Hey aren't I always- wait don't answer that./

He walked towards them, " Hey guys, how you doing?"

The one in the middle answered him, " Lord Malak was most displeased when he had heard that you had escaped the destruction of Taris. He has offered a generous reward for your capture."

" Hey, I have a bounty!", he exclaimed smiling, " and mom thought I'd never amount to anything!"

" Foolish Jedi! You will not save yourself from doom with your humor.", the one on the left told him

They ignited their lightsabers and ran to him.

He put on a shield and force jumped toward them.

" **Where is Kaleb?", **Zalbaar growled to Bastila

" He went to fight three dark jedi on his own because we don't have enough healing supplies."

Zalbaar noticed that she was pacing back and forth, **" Do not worry about Kaleb, if he needs our help he will call." **

" I am not worried about him, If he wants to be an imbecile about the situation let him."

Zalbaar shook his head and went back to being alert for Kaleb's call.

" Uggh!", the dark jedi groaned as one of Kaleb's sabers was in his stomach, while the other saber was blocking an attack. Even though he had blocked that attack he had no defense again a sickly orange-yellow light that stole his life energy. Knowing that he wouldn't last long if the other dark jedi kept doing that, hr tried to force push him down. He dogged it and was getting ready to take his life energy again until Kaleb used stun on them. Succeeding this time he pushed the first dark jedi away with his saber and jumped quickly to eliminate the one that couldn't move.

He breathed heavily, " Well you're the only one left, me and you...lets get this over with!"

Knowing that he was alone also, the man made one last effort to kill him. Sensing his desperation he got out of the way and attacked both of his legs, but before he fell, he flung his lightsaber at Kaleb's exposed arms. It burned through his skin as he cried out in anguish.

Bastila's eyes widened, " He's hurt -badly-lets go!" Zalbaar was confused as to how she knew this, but he followed her anyway.

The gash hadn't went through to the bone, but it was still deep enough and his skin was badly scarred. He used the advanced med pack on it and it healed everything, but left a nasty scar.

" There's another one for the collection.", he sighed amazed that he survived

I mean the Council told him he was one of the best students that they had ever seen, but he was still a padawan by their standards. It just wasn't making any sense that he had this much skill in so little time of training, he was good but was he really that good?

He chuckled, " I'm beginning to sound like Carth."

" Kaleb! Are you alright!", Bastila was running with a face full of concern.

Ok now he was scared.

" Hey Bastila", he said worryingly, " what's wron-"

" Where are you hurt? I tried to hurry, you were right we can feel each other's pain an-"

" Calm down", he said slowly, " you're talking so fast that I haven't seen you breathe yet. Yes I'm alright, yes I did get hurt, but it wasn't serious so I used a advanced med pack, and of course I was right."

" Well if you're so sure that you're not hurt than why do you have that gruesome scar on your arm?"

" Damn I was trying to hide it.", he said to her smiling sheepishly, " Like I said it's nothing fatal."

Not listening she snatched up his arm and inspected it closely.

" Oh so you like it rough huh?"

Ignoring him she healed his arm properly and the scar disappeared.

" Shoot, I thought it made me look even more manly."

She dropped his arm and started walking away, " You're impossible."

He was truly puzzled, " What's up with her?", he asked Zalbaar

" **I still do not fully understand your human emotions, but I believe she was concerned about you." **

" She was worried about me?"

" **Yes, I do not know how, but she "sensed" that you were hurt." **

" Well who would thunk it? I guess she can be alright...when she's not being so uptight.", he added as he started walking also.

" **How these humans don't drive themselves insane with their emotions beyond my range of understanding." **

" There's another Wookie at the entrance of your village Zalbaar."

" **Let me pass"**, he growled at the guard threateningly, **" Let me into the village of my people." **

The guard replied back just as threateningly.

" **You are not permitted madclaw! But since our leader, Chundar, wants to speak with you, so you are to go to him now." **

" Okay...great that's what we wanted in the first place, let me speak to Chundar.", Kaleb said to the guard

This angered the Wookie greatly, **" This is not your own decision! You cannot alter things that you have no will to change!" **

" Whatever, can we meet him now?"

He looked at him with great disdain, but lead them to Chundar's room.

" No!", Kaleb yelled at Chundar, " You will not take Zalbaar and I will not do your dirty work for you!"

" **You can do the task or not, but if you do not my brother will remain with me. They wouldn't let me get away with holding you, but holding him here is just fine." **

" Well it looks like we have no other choice.", Bastila replied nonchalantly

" No other choice?", he roared in rage, " There is always a choice Bastila and that choice is to take Zalbaar with us by force and not leave him here with this-space slug!"

" You cannot always have your way! The only thing that we can do is this task and get him back."

Kaleb was beyond pissed at his situation, " Arrg... Zalbaar just play along, I'll get you out of here."

" **Enough!", Chundar roared, " You are dismissed and do not come back until have completed my task." **

They were escorted out of the room by some Cerka employees.

" Lets get this " his task" over with so we can get Zalbaar because I don't trust his brother at all."

On the way to the elevator to get to the Shadow lands, they met some more Wookies who didn't want anything to do with them.

Kaleb couldn't blame them though because of all the outsiders to betray them why should they trust him, he thought

But after that they finally met the operator of the elevator.

" **Chundar has permitted you to go down to the Shadow lands, so are you prepared?" **

" First of all, he hasn't permitted me anything, I came down here of my own accordand secondly just lower the thing down.", Kaleb told him irritably still angered by Chundar's name.

" **I will take you, but be still or we will attract unwelcome visitors on the decent." **

Kaleb looked at his surroundings in amazement. He thought it was beautiful in a strange and dark way, but something was...wrong about it. It was like a stagnant animal laboring on its breathes; trying to survive.

/ Bastila do you feel this/

/ Yes it's very strong and it's starting to corrupt the atmosphere./

/ I should be careful here then..., he concluded talking more to himself then her

/ Well thank you very much for the concern/

/ Huh? Oh do you need some encouragement/

/ I need no such thing from you! I just thought that you would be considerate enough to worry about someone other than yourself./

/ Well whatever, but I got a bad feeling about this whole situation./

/ I don't exactly trust it either, but we really don't have any other choiceand hopefully we will find the Star Map in the process./

As soon as she gave him her warning they landed on the forest floor.

" You've led me on quite a chase, I've got to admit, but there's no way to escape now."

Calo Nord emerged from the shadows with two Wookies straddled with blaster rifles.

" I was outnumbered last time but", he scoffed, " since there's only two of you- you won't be so lucky this time."

Kaleb stepped off the elevator.

" You know I never cease to amaze myself because I was just telling my lovely companion", he winked at her while she rolled her eyes, " that something bad was going to happen; and like magic you come out of nowhere."

" But back to the task at him", he hurried up when he saw Calo loading his blaster, " You said I beat you with luck?" " Hmm...ok here's a little bet for ya", he smiled devilishly, " if I win I get you're armor and if you win, which you won't, I'll give you...my lightsaber."

/ What are you doing, Bastila practically screamed into his head

/ Well if you had been paying attention I just made a bet with Calo./

/ I know what you did, she yelled enraged/ But out of all the things that you could have bet on you chose you're lightsaber! You are a Jedi and that is a sacred-/

/ Oh you mean the shiny glow-stick/

/ It is not a shiny glow-stick! It is-/

/ As much as I love talking to you Bastila, he really isn't known for his patience so I'm going to fight him now./

Calo interrupted them, " I have no need for your trinket "jedi", I will just kill you and take it!"

" Lets see you try!"

He lighted his saber and forced jumped toward him after telling Bastila to focus in the Wookies through their bond. Calo took a shot at his head, but he instinctively deflected it back at him. He rolled out of the way just in time to avoid it. Taking this slight pause in action to his advantage, he put up a shield and turned around to see if Bastila was alright. She was doing great, he had to admit, with one Wookie down and the other one on the ropes.

" Pay attention!", Calo hissed at him barraging him with a torrent of bolts.

He quickly spun around and easily deflected them, but he couldn't get close enough to strike without being left vulnerable.

**Pzzzt **

Nord's shield had finally fizzled out from having so many bolts hit him.

" Got you!"

He jumped , using the force to further himself, behind him and forced his saber into his back.

" Uggh!", he groaned in utter suffering while blood dripped down his cheek.

" Well I guess I won the bet.", Kaleb said to himself smirking.

But of course who would ruin his perfect mood? Meltdown by Bastila in 3...2...1.

" I cannot believe that you reduce your lightsaber to such petty gambling! You are supposed to be a Jedi and yet you act nowhere near!"

He sighed deeply, " Why does everybody keep saying that?" " I'm not a jedi and as soon as everybody gets that through their thick heads, the better we'll all be."

" Why do you hate the Jedi so much!", she rebutted.

" Oh see that's were you got things confused, I don't hate the "jedi" or the council- I hate the ideals you have."

He saw the expression on her face and reassured her.

" Hey if it makes you feel better I don't like the sith either." " The way I see it they both have major faults. The jedi try to make their followers into emotionless drones and if that tach over there has more emotion then you do that's not a good thing. The sith are just as bad because they kill innocent people for no reason and they have a thoughtless ruthlessness that's dangerous on both sides.

He looked at her, " How many sith were positioned on Taris one thousand-two? And he wiped them and everyone else out just to get a chance of killing you Bastila -a chance, not even a definite action, so what would he have done if he knew he could've exterminated you?"

" Do you not see that this is the exact reason why we must stop him?", she asked him fiercely, but was still amazed that he thought about this subject on such an extent. " Surely it is better to give up only emotion to walk on the path of the light side then to fall to that destruction! They kill and ruin and you don't see a difference!"

" Oh no", he stated calmly, " I never said that there wasn't a difference between them, but at the end of the day both of them cannot admit to their flaws and yet they preach about a better way." "And to answer your question", he continued before she could say anything, " yes killing is a terrible crime, but what are you without feelings? Love, envy, anger, happiness, and even lust, without these you shouldn't even be considered human, so answer this, without these emotions-instincts-are you so far away from being dead yourself?"

She was shocked, he was so very persuasive...

" Both are guilty, to my knowledge, of killing though in different ways. The jedi internally and the sith physical-what's the difference now? Both are hypocrites who are unknowingly destroying themselves slowly.", he said with a mixture of emotions straining his voice. " The sith devastate themselves to make sure they are always the strongest, which is futile, but are so blinded by power that they think that they are doing nothing wrong and the jedi, trying so hard to be nowhere near them, take the power of feelings away altogether."

He closed his eyes, " Why do you think some jedi fall to the " dark side"?" " They have always questioned the jedi beliefs and was curious about what it would be like to feel-but who could blame them since they were deprived of these since childhood? Why do the sith kill off each other when they sense weakness? They are afraid that for even a moment if they experience that doubt, that fear, they would reconsider their path and that is unacceptable to them. " They feel their body deteriorating and yet they know they can do nothing to stop it but defeat it; so in turn they are just hurting themselves." " To summarize", he concluded his voice calm again, "both have started a path of never-ending self-destruction."

She was speechless, he had just denounced both sides and proved himself within less than twenty minutes.

" Hey go me!", he exclaimed drastically changing the mood, " I had a deep moment!"

She looked at him in exasperation, " How do you that?" " You become serious one second and idiotic the next?"

" Hey it's a gift.", he told her laughing it off, " Well we have a job to do don't we?"

He took Calo Nord's armor off his body and looked at Bastila expectantly.

She glared at him confused, " What?"

He grinned, " As much as I now you want to see my body, sorry to disappoint you, but there's a fee of fifty credits so pay up or no peep show."

" As if someone would pay, credits no less, to see what's underneath you're armor."

She immediately mentally slapped herself for what she had said.

" Oh so you're already fantasizing about that already? Freaky...I like it!"

" You know as well as I what I really meant."

" Sure your words say that, but your emotions are going wild"

" I know that you are lying because my mind is nowhere near thinking about you!"

" Hey don't get mad, I was trying to save you from your bottled-up lust for me."

He looked at her surprised that she was turned around already.

" I assure you I have no lust, especially for you, but it is fairly apparent that you have some for me. Please try to control yourself so we can effectively complete this mission."

He was about to go off about how noone with half a brain in their head would like her, but had a better idea.

" You know what Bastila", he walked over to her and put his hand on the side of her cheek with a face full of seriousness, " You're absolutely correct." " I think you're drop-dead gorgeous and-", he couldn't help himself, " My manly emotions can't handle the sexual tension between us. I must have you no-" He couldn't finish because he was laughing so hard.

" Just change into you're stupid armor.", she hissed at him, hating the fact that she liked it when he touched her.

He just didn't know how convincing he was sometimes, most people would kill to have this skill that comes so easily to him.

" Ok, ok.", he told her gasping for air, " I got it under contro-"

He started cracking up again while picking up Calo's armor and started to put it on.

" Alright I'm done."

She turned around with the same angry/frustrated look on her face.

He chuckled, " Bastila you know you know it was just joking right?"

" Does it look like I care?"

" Aww Bastila, I think you're pretty.", he told her in a silly voice

She groaned, " I hate you!" " You do that on purpose so I can't stay mad at you! Sometimes I just want to use you for lightsaber practice, but other times-"

" You want to kiss me right?", he asked her with his trademark smile

" No, I want to force push you off a cliff."

" Ooh, feisty"

" Actually I feel much better now, thank you for bringing that up."

He didn't believe that she didn't like him one bit. When he touched her something, maybe the force around her, felt... at peace.

Whew that was a long one, but I got through it. I was, for some reason, feeling deep when I wrote this chapter and I thought I should show Kaleb's real view on the situation he's in. I hope you find this chapter funny too because I was laughing as I wrote it. As always enjoy and please review.


	5. New people, old stories, & more fights

Happy Thanksgiving! Since a lot of you asked so nicely I'm going to do the 5th chapter a little bit faster. I'm immensely pleased that new people have reviewed my story. Thanks! But shout-out to the people who've been doing it all along! Love ya! Again gotta give thanks for the constructive criticism makes my chapters better and better. Lets get down to it. This chapter has . . . surprises and great fighting scenes toward the end of the chapter which I think ya'll are gonna like. But you know I really want to know what ya'll think about the story so I'm starting a poll.

If you had, the choice would you be a gray, light, or dark Jedi or would you just go f-it and not be one at all?

And special thanks to EternalDarkPrincess for the review. I was so happy that at least somebody thought that was funny because when I wrote it I was cracking up. Also I'm happy with the impression that you have of Kaleb. I want him to be undescribable, but still him. He's not oh golly gee good or I will control the universe bad, he's just...him.

Chapter 5

As they kept walking, they found some creatures that could regenerate themselves but quickly found out that they were only tough when the fought in groups.

" All right Bastila split them up and try to get them alone."

She followed his advise and deflected of too many of them by using a big attack on one and getting the other to follow her alone.

Kaleb kept using his force jumps to frustrate the beasts and then goading them toward him one by one.

" Oh come on I know you can do better than that!"

It charged at him, with the other gaining on his trail, at full speed.

" Thank you for walking into Kaleb's trap He told them smiling. please come again."

He forced pushed both of the into each other threw both of his lightsabers at their mid-sections and summoned them back just as quickly.

" Another battle won thanks to my brilliant fighting skills." he announced turning to Bastila.

She was already walking and was about to turn into a clearing.

" Hey wait up!"

As he caught up to her an old jedi fighting four of the monsters that they had just fought and he was doing so with ease.

" Now those She directed at Kaleb without taking her eyes off the fight. are brilliant fighting skills."

" I could do that too, but he's just showing off."

After they were all killed the old man walked up to them.

" Ah the damnable racket of battle, you would think these old ears would have gotten use to it by now."

Kaleb looked at Bastila who was, he couldn't believe, silent.

" Well since you're not going to ask the million credit question I will. Why are you here old man it's obvious that you're a jedi?"

" Oh don't start that with me. I've seen my share of the light and the dark and frankly I'm sick of them both. Like little kids fighting over a big piece of candy." he scoffed.

" See Bastila he didn't like either side and he lives in the Shadow lands."

" Yes, yes come to my house if you want to talk more- unless you like the smell of dead animals."

" You have a house down here?"Bastila asked him astounded.

" Yes, I live like an animal to answer you're question; I fought the sith and now look at me."

" Oh no, I wasn't implying that you live like a mere animal." she told regretfully.

" She meant why are you living down here old man?" Kaleb added trying to hurry this little chat up.

" Hmmp! You young people these days, so damn impatient! I'll answer all of your questions when we get to my place, follow me."

He started to run to his house before they could ask him anything else.

He looked at her. " Ok when old jedis ask you to come to their house aren't you supposed to run?"

" I think we should go."

" What!"

" I didn't sense any deception from him and he might also have leads to where the Star Map will be."

" I don't really want to go to the this old man's house, but he might also know something about this madclaw we're supposed to find."

He saw a look of pure disbelief on Bastila's face.

" Oh yeah and the Star Map of course."

They started to run so they wouldn't lose him.

" And besides Kaleb smiled. I want to know more about this person who doesn't like the sith and the jedi also."

" Great you made it! The old man greeted them. pull up a stomp and be comfortable."

" No thanks I'll stand, but if you really want to be accommodating you could start with your name." Kaleb told him not really looking to stay for a long time.

" My name is Jolee Bindo and I'm sure you have questions."

" Yeah, do you know anything about the so-called madclaw down her-and the Star Map." he added before Bastila could say something

" They want to know about the Star Map, no don't answer them." Jolee said talking to himself.

" No offense but I really don't need or have time for this right now-goodbye."

" Wait, wait, wait, wait. You'll have nothing but time if you don't stay here and listen to what I had to say."

" You're looking for the Star Map? I know the way and I will lead you, **but** you have to do a task for me first."

" There's always a catch, he scoffed, always."

" You can complain all you want, but you still have to do it." Jolee told him curtly.

" You are difficult to deal with Bastila replied worryingly. this worries me."

" Makes you think I'm falling to dark side-oooo, maybe I'm corrupted-oooo.", he told her sarcastically.

Kaleb was laughing so hard his stomach hurt.

" Unlike Bastila here I actually have a sense of humor.

He started to warm up to him. " All right I'll do your task-as long as you take us to the Star Map. So what is this task?"

" I want you to deal with a couple of Cerka's men. They don't respect the environment."

" Oh so the old man wants me to remove some kids from off his lawn?" Kaleb asked him snidely.

" Yes I'm a cranky old man, but I'm also your elder so show some respect!"

" What? You want respect too?" he joked.

" Anyway Jolee continued. I don't want you to kill them... find a better way."

Kaleb raised his eyebrow. " For somebody who doesn't like the jedi sound like one."

" You know comparing me to things, isn't going to get your task over with any sooner, he said matter-of-factly. now don't come back until you finish-shoo, shoo!"

He grumbled to himself while he and Bastila went to get this over with.

" For this to be such an important mission, we sure get side-tracked a lot."

" I will agree that we do tend to get side-tracked, but like Jolee said complaining won't do us any good."

" And here I am thinking that you finally agreed with me ,he shook his head, but of course I have to be wrong somehow. Wait.", he stopped.

" What is it?"

" It's a Wookie corpse and look what's on it."

He picked up a data pad andopened it.

" It's...it's a slaver contract."

" I don't understand, the only reason that a Wookie should have a slaver contract is if-"

"The Wookie was a trader to his own kind also. Kaleb finished. There's just treachery everywhere isn't there, he exclaimed with his face contorted. and no one can blame them because they're just trying to survive! It's just so stupid-all of it- it doesn't make since!"

He looked at Bastila with a quiet furygleaming in his eyes. " Where are the jedi now! Is this too little, too quaint for them!"

" Kaleb you have to calm down, you're becoming hysterical. Slavery is a bad thing, but it happens, we must do what we can and keep our emotions in check."

" A bad thing! Stubbing your toe is a bad thing! Not having any credits to buy something you want is a bad thing! How dare you make it sound so simple!", he roared at her but immediately regretted it when he saw her eyes widened with shock and...he couldn't quite place it, but he thought it was fear.

" I-I'm sorry Bastila, he spoke softly but you could here his remorse, I told you I was from Deralia, right?"

"Y-yes, she answered him her voice almost a whisper, I remember."

" It was a tough place to grow up, if you didn't know the right people. Think Taris without the upper city and the lower and under cities is the whole planet."

She winced at the thought.

" Yeah...well aliens roamed the planet looking for human slaves to sell on the market for credits, but some just wanted to kill humans for the sport of it. So that obviously meant that we didn't just stand around outside; we hid and only went out when it was absolutely necessary. That also meant that kids couldn't play out there either, but..."

He sighed heavily. " My best friend Hayden and I were just as stubborn as you say I am know, but time two. Hayden dared me to go with him to our secret base and I couldn't say no to a dare-still can't for that matter. So we snuck out and went to this secluded spot that we found when we were little."

He paused and ran his hand over his head.

" There were some Rodians, but of course we didn't know they would be there. They...they captured us...in a net, like **animals**, we were worthless except for the price that we could fetch. But again being hard-headed, we tried to escape."

Bastila just stared at him in utter skepticism trying to say something, but her throat had become so dry.

"My father was a hunter, which was rare for a human on my planet, before he left us."

" Your father abandoned you and your mother?"

" Not everybody has a dad that they can be proud of Bastila. He was a drunk and he came home late doing who knows what every night. But you know what that wasn't the worst of it...my mom she waited up for him every night, no matter how late it was. And then when he finally came home, my mom wasn't mad at him- I mean is that sane!"

" I asked her why once, why do you let him do that to you? And she said it was love. It made her stay up every night and braced herself for disappointment on each and every time. It made her take the-abuse from that man, but she told me that never be afraid of it because only people can taint it. But she had a pure love and that's scarier than a fake one, when it's real you can't function without that other person."

"Kaleb I'm so sorry."

" No, don't be sorry because you have nothing to be sorry about...I'm the one that's sorry. I was so useless because I was too weak-too young." he told her bitterly.

" Kaleb it wasn't your fault, you did all that you could I'm sure."

" Your right...but it wasn't enough Bastila, that's why I promised myself to be stronger. When that man left he set his hunter's knife on my bed that's were I made my oath."

He laughed forcefully again. " Sorry I guess I kind of got of track, but you needed to know where I got the knife from that helped us escape from the net. When I sliced it open we tumbled out and rolled onto the ground.

"I was fine, and I thought Hayden was too, but he had too much pride for his own good. We ran as fast as we could, but his knee was bruised badly and it gave out on him."

He closed his eyes and exhaled sharply. "They caught him and killed him because he wouldn't tell me that he was hurt and they did it right in front of me. I still don't know how I escaped, but it happened somehow and as you can see I survived."

"Kaleb, you can't keep blaming yourself- it wasn't your f-."

He raised his hand to signal her to stop

"Don't feel bad for me Bastila he gave her a warm, but artificial smile. it was in the past and if I learned anything it was to not get hung over the small stuff-and yes I'm alright. Well like you said the sooner we finish our task from Jolee, the sooner we find the Star Map."

He started to walk away being his usual happy-go-lucky self. Bastila slowly followed him finally understanding why he acted like he did, but still not really knowing if he was okay or not.

"Alright, old man, we did what you asked."

Kaleb and Bastila walked up to him

" Now it's your turn to come through."

"You young people are so disrespectful, but yes you did what I asked and you...spared them, I sense no bloodshed on you two."

"How about that, we did exactly what you told us to do!"

"Well if you're as smart as your mouth is we might just survive this trip."

He turned to Bastila, who had expected him to saw something ignorant to Jolee, but he just grinned.

"Me and this guy are going places!"

"You have to be joking! If I said something like that you would have had a retaliation."

He smirked at her. "Yeah you're probably right, but he isn't a pretty girl like you."

"So we have a ladies man? Jolee told him laughing. I can already tell we're going to get into trouble with him."

" Well I do what I can."

Bastila scoffed. "Can we please get back to something more important! Like finding the Star Maps!"

"Come on old man, lets go before has another meltdown."

"I don't know kid...it might already be too late."

Kaleb laughed as they walked towards their destination .

She put her hand on her head "Not two of them."

" So this is the barrier you were talking about huh? Hmm pretty...lets tear it down."

"Don't you even care about why it's here?", Jolee questioned him

"Not my problem, tear it down."

"I can manipulate it for a moment, but prepare yourself, I have a feeling that we're going to discover a lot more than a Star Map."

As they went further into the lower depths, Kaleb heard something.

"Hey! What's that?"

He stopped when he spotted multiple figures.

"Well I doubt that it's a good thing kid, but few things in life are."

" Since we all know that there's only one way to find out, lets go."

"Must you always be so eager when you enter a battle?"

"Bastila I'm not eager to enter the battle but I'm eager to get it over with."

" He has a point because believe it or not there was something smart about what he just said."

Kaleb walked closer and saw some Mandalorians ganging up on a lone Wookie.

"Do people get a kick out of bullying Wookies or is it just me?", he asked them as he jumped to the nearest one and forced both of his sabers through his head armor. He yelped in pain as he fell

to the ground writhing in agony and fell silent soon after. The others turned away from the Wookie and faced him.

" You will not survive this encounter jedi, we will avenge our brother!"

"Don't get mad at me because your brother was a pushover." He jeered.

The one who talked before roared as they charged, full force, at him. Their weapons locked as a ring resounded from it. The Mandalorian pushed himself back and started to rapidly slashed both of Kaleb's sabers out of his hands. He quickly positioned the blade at his heart.

"Goodbye jedi, see you in-"

"You really need to learn Kaleb told him laughing how to kill people when you have the chance."

" Do you not see the sword at your heart! You are the one who is about to die-ughh!"

Bastila's lightsaber went though his back as Jolee was finishing up with the other one. He clutched his back as he coughed up blood.

"Yeah I'm not really planning on dying for a while now."

" D-damn...you...a-all."

He collapsed and was terribly still

"And on that note lets find that mad-claw."

Bastila looked at him in disbelief. "Are you so inept, that you just missed the fact that you almost died?"

" But I didn't, so what's the problem?", he asked her as he gave the injured Wookie a med pack.

"The problem, she spat, is that you are too reckless!"

"I'm not seeing how I was reckless. I knew that you were behind him and I acted on it."

"That is besides the point! What if I wasn't there, what then?"

"Well if that's what you wanted to know why didn't you just ask in the first place? I would have used the force to make one of my lightsabers catch him off guard, which would have made him defenseless, and the other saber would have finished it." "You don't have to worry about me Bastila, I'm a big boy now."

"Alright you lovebirds, lets save the romance for after the we're done and before I vomit."

The kinrath's body split in half splattering Bastila's face with its blood. She shuddered not being able to wait to get on the ship and take a shower.

" Aww come on! The mighty Bastila can't be scared of a little kinrath blood on her face is she?"

"No I am not scared of the blood, she hissed, but I don't want to be covered in it either."

She did feel a little self-conscious about her appearance and was hoping that she didn't look like a monster.

"Actually I think it looks so good that it might be an improvement, what's it called "essence of kinrath"? You should definitely market it."

She just ignored him and kept walking.

He was so ignorant for no reason to her and he would never know how frustrating he was. It was like his purpose for living was to irk her until she was crazy. Even though she would've died before she would admit that she tried to read his mind, it was of no use to her anyway. It was like a puzzle that had missing pieces and the ones that you saw made you think that you were finally figuring something out, but then re-arranged themselves to confuse you again.

No, I must remain on task. she thought

The Council had berated her constantly about the danger of the former dark lord, but she had to stop Malak, it was her duty as a Jedi, and nothing-nothing would get in the way of that.

"Hey Bastila, old man! I think I found it!"

"I may be old, but nobody gave you the right to call me so dammit!"

" Stop being an old coot and get over here."

She and Jolee had made it to where he was and she spotted a hologram of some ancient alien species.

Kaleb smiled "I'm going to try to talk to it."

"Be careful, it might not be safe."

"I sense no danger from this device." He told her with a fake spaced out look.

"I am serious Kaleb! Lets examine it fir-"

" So hey hologram, how do I get access to the Star Map?"

And does he listen to me? No he talks to the thing and puts everybody's lives in danger.

_Neural scan complete, preliminary match found...access granted_

"What? Access granted? It always said failed neural recognition to me."

"Maybe I'm just lucky." He knew that Jolee wouldn't believe it, but hey he didn't believe it himself.

_Yes, I know of this Star Map, but it is restricted unless you take an evaluation to readjust your neural scan to the original. _

"Who is this individual?"

_Error information corrupted, probability of deletion by former master-100. _

"How can I be evaluated on something I don't know about?"

_Error, there is no data on previous neural scans, probability of deletion-100. _

" Well it's obvious that the person that was here before me erased there tracks pretty well. He sighed Alright then, begin evaluation."

_Evaluation requested, first question. You and the Wookie Zalbaar were held in prison for a crime one or both of you committed. You can blame him for the crime, he could blame you, one could stay and the other goes, or both would stay. But there is a cost, if both of you blame each other, both of will be in the prison for 10 years, if you say that you're guilty and he says that you aren't you get 10 years, if- _

"Ugh stop talking. He groaned. you're making my head hurt. I can already tell that this little test is going to be biased so I refuse to take it."

_If you refuse to take the evaluation then you cannot get to the Star Map. _

"Well that is a predicament isn't it?...oh wait no it's not, I'll just tear you apart to get access to it."

_Neural scan recognized, preliminary match met, but you did not do it through the evaluation. _

"Oh you got to be kidding me! He spat at the droid. I match the person, but you still won't let me get the Star Map because I won't take your stupid test!"

_Defense mechanisms engaged. _

He turned around to his companions. "Yeah you two might want to arm yourselves because I think I pissed the droid off."

Two droids came out of nowhere and put up bluish-colored shields.

"They don't look so tough."

One droid starting firing two steady streams of blaster fire and the other bellowed searing flames in their direction.

Bastila looked at him " Congratulations Kaleb. You're the only person that I've known that can piss off a droid!"

He put his sabers in his belt and took out two viroswords and gave Bastila the double-bladed

Echani sword, but didn't get away without her "what the hell are you doing" look.

"Use this instead of your saber so you can get through its shield faster and then you can use your precious lightsaber to your heart's content."

He dodged a blaster that was aimed for his head.

"Well you can have that one-this one's mine!"

He ran to the droid before it could fire again and brought his swords down hard on his metallic frame as sparks flew around him as he broke the shield. The droid, only phased for a moment, blasted again, but this time also attacked his chest with it's leg.

"Shit!", he hissed in pain as he clutched his side.

It was blunt, but it had so much force behind it that it knocked him to the ground and his side was singed from the bolt. He heard the droid coming closer to finish the job.

He got up and healed his side.

"Thanks for the workout, but without that nice shield of yours, you don't stand a chance."

He disabled it with a force energy and took out his lightsabers and twirled them in his hand.

"Now it's time to get serious."

He threw one of his lightsaber horizontally and forced jump high in the air. As he was up there he saw hi plan executed in slow motion. The saber had sliced right through the droid with a brilliance of golden-blue sparks. He had was on his way down as he caught his saber in mid air and tumbled to the ground with both sabers in his hand.

"Not as graceful as I thought it would be, he said gasping, but it got the job done." /Hey Bastila can you hear me/

/Kaleb I don't know if you realize this or not, but this isn't the best time for friendly chit-chat./

/I know, that's why I contacted you. I beat the droid and-/

/This is no time for your gloating/

/Would you just listen to me for a sec? I have a plan to take out the one you and Jolee are fighting, but you need to listen to what I say carefully and don't hesitate./

/Kaleb! She thought in alarm What are you going to do/

He disregarded her concern. /Alright here's the plan: you're going to throw me your lightsaber when I give you the signal and then you and Jolee are going to run away like a tach out of hell./

/No this is too dangerous-even for you! You will die if you don't escape that explosion fast enough/

/I thought we already went over this. I'm not planning on dying anytime soon./

/It doesn't matter if you intend to or not Kaleb/ She was getting angry at him because he was refusing to listen to her.

/You know I wouldn't do anything that I wasn't sure of winning, right/

She was silent.

/Ok! Here I come/

He got up and sprinted towards them and closed his mind as he got closer to the droid; he didn't need any distractions. As soon as he saw the back of the droid's body, he put all of his power into his force jump.

The wind attacked him as he sailed above the droid, but this time everything was fast and uncontrollable-just the way he liked it. He brought his lightsaber to life and used it as a rudder to guide him exactly above it. As the gravity of the planet started to tug him back down and he was at least five feet above the droid he gave Bastila the signal.

/Bastila throw it now/ He instructed her, but still felt heavy apprehension so he added. /Come on, you have to trust me/

She flung her saber towards him and told Jolee that they had to get out of the way like he told her to. He caught it and powered it up as he spun it around over his head. Sensing that his was his chance he darted his lightsaber at it's head and pushed himself off it to land on the ground safely. Knowing that he didn't have much time before the droid exploded from the head injury he positioned himself a few feet away from it. He was breathing heavily and knew that he had to get this second attack just right or he would die like Bastila said he would.

He smiled, there was no way some piece of scrap metal was going to make him miss Bastila admit that she liked him. He yelled as he ran to it with her saber behind his back, still ignited, and just as the droid was charging up to take one last shot. Bastila's lightsaber was held suspended in mid air as he propelled it right through it's body. Luckily the saber was long enough to have the desired effect and it started having short electrical bursts jetting out of the places where the weapons have been. He called back both of the light sabers and put his in his sash while he used hers one last time. He kicked off the ground and spun the saber to repel himself from the droid faster and reduce wind resistance. Just as he was getting into a safe range it exploded in a electrical fury and burned his hands and the light had blocked his vision.

Kaleb got up slowly, but immediately regretted it using his hands to push himself up. He grunted as he lifted them to his face, inspected them, and winced. The back part of his hands were severely burnt and had some under skin showing in some areas.

"Ewww!" He said in disgust as he healed his hands with the last bit of force he had left.

Bastila reached out to him with noticeable concern.

/Kaleb are you alright/

/No! Bastila you're not going to believe this, but I burned the hell out of my hands/ He answered her being overly dramatic on purpose.

He flexed his now perfectly restored hands to see if everything was still working right.

/Good as new-and ooo baby soft/ He said jokingly.

/Kaleb you cannot keep risking your life like that because one day you may not be so lucky./

/Ok mom, but there was thirty percent skill in there somewhere. But seriously if you're telling me the whole "I'm a hero let me risk my life to save yours" thing isn't turning you on I would've stopped, but I know you like it./

/I just wanted to see if you were alright, but maybe our situation would have been better if you had died./

/Such mean words you say to me/

He got up and started walking towards his companions.

"I mean all that for one Star Map. There better be some kind of big reward at the end of this mission."

"Is saving the galaxy and billions of lives not good enough of a reward for you?" She asked him shocked that he would be so self-centered

"Well saving the galaxy is all find and good, but I wouldn't mind getting some well deserved R&R. Especially Jolee though because I'm surprised he can walk with his bones creaking so badly."

"Well next time I'll stop myself from getting old."

Kaleb laughed. "So now Queen Bastila I request permission to find the mad-claw that will save Zalbaar from his evil brother."

"I'm going to let that one go because you saved me-"

"Three times and counting."

"-and Jolee from the droid."

"Yeah it was pretty impressive with the lights and the explosions and running for my life."

"I'm sorry, I didn't see anything."

"WHAT! You didn't see my attack!"

"No, I'm sure you saw the blinding light that the droid made."

He groaned loudly. If she had seen his attack that would have definitely made her come out about her crush on him.

Bastila could sense his disappointment. "But I am sure that you were quite skilled."

"Damn straight I was!" He looked at her "Thanks for telling me, but it isn't the same."

"Hey you two! Jolee exclaimed, there's someone I think that both of you would like to meet."

Kaleb and Bastila jogged toward him and saw a scruffy looking Wookie.

"Well I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that's the mad claw Chundar wants killed."

He roared **"You will not make me a slave!" **

" He's almost feral now, but it's to know surprise considering what has happened to him.

" Put your weapon down. We don't want to hurt you and maybe you can help us get Zalbaar back."

"**Why do you speak the names of my sons? Are you their owners?" **

"No I don't own Zalbaar, but he has sworn a life debt to me, why I'll never know."

"**A life debt? If my son has indeed done this then you must have done something commendable. My name is Freyer,but I will still be wary for I have been gullible in the past." **

"So what happens now?"

"**Well that depends on you. You can kill me or you can work with me to overthrow my son Chundar." **

"I thought you'd never ask! He seems to be the source of the slavery of the Wookies so if we take him out and get back things to normal, everything could be rebuilt."

"**There is a traditional sword, Bacca's sword, that has been passed down to chieftains for generations. If a member of the family has a piece of this relic they can challenge the current chieftain for power." **

"But you need us to get this piece of the sword for you, correct?" Bastila inferred

"**Yes, but fortunately there is a ritual ground south of here maybe you will find something there. Also you should take a dead kinrath and tie it to the vine." **

"And what's going to happen after that because I get the feeling it's not going to be fun."

"**I cannot tell you of what you will face, but it would be wise to prepare yourself." **

"Most of the time I wouldn't walk into something that I don't know about, but we have to get Zalbaar, so lets go."

Kaleb started walking to the southern area.

"Always making brash decisions without consulting with us and then rushing off; I'm too old for this dammit!"

"Hey we're in luck, these kinrath we killed earlier will do just fine." Kaleb told them picking up the body. "Now we just ne to find the cl-"

He stopped when he saw it and the hundreds of dangling vines.

"Well...found it!" He told them smiling.

"It would be more accurate to say that the clearing found you."

He tried to play it off. "It doesn't matter who found what as long as we found it."

They walked over to a vine an Kaleb tied it up there and waited.

After a couple of seconds, they all heard a deep rumbling coming from the opposite direction. As the sound got louder, a rampaging monster with green and brownish slimy skin, a plate-like head, and huge teeth tusks jetting out from it's mouth. Bastila's eyes widened

"Is that a tarentatek?"

"You mean the animal that the Twi-lek on Dantoinne told us about?"

"Yes, but Kaleb they are very powerful-especially against Jedi."

"Well then I shouldn't have a problem!" he told her while running to it.

He used the force to push it down, but it failed.

"What the hell!"

He used it again, but it still didn't effect it. Bastila ran over to him and Jolee held him off.

"I tried to tell you that it can't be affected by the Force because it feeds on it."

He groaned. "It doesn't matter! We have to get the sword piece and stop Chundar and Cerka!"

He got up and ran towards it again with his saber out.

"If I can't use this force, I'll just do this the old-fashioned way."

He jabbed the lightsaber in it's back and found out the hard way that its skin was resistant.

"I guess I'm going to need some more power for this. And pulled out his second saber. Yes I think that will do nicely."

He forced them both into his back. The creature growled in pain as it turned around to see what was the cause of this irritation by swinging his massive arms. Kaleb jumped out of the way, but couldn't avoid being force pushed to the ground. He was pissed at the monster and used both of his lightsabers to climb up the tarentatek's back. It tried to fling him off, but was too busy fighting Bastila's flurry attacks. Reaching for the neck, he took both sabers out of it's back and carved it's head. The top of it was indestructible, as he expected, but the back of his head was soft and unprotected.

When he finally got the head off it's body let out a green gas. Jolee had moved out the way so the heavy body of the monster wouldn't crush them. Kaleb held his breathe and took out the blade of Bacca's sword out of the tarentatek's body, while cutting his hands badly.

"Aww man, I just healed these. he exclaimed while jumping of it's body. Hey is everybody okay?"

He saw Jolee healing his minor wounds.

"Ok, that's one, but where's Bastila?"

He saw her on the ground with a deep scratch across her stomach.

"Dammit Bastila! You could have told me earlier! he yelled at her frustrated. You've already lost too much blood!"

"Kalab...I...it" she groaned.

"Hold on just a little bit longer!"

He put both of his hands over her cut and concentrated as hard as he could on fixing her wound and healing her properly. The gash had healed and the blood had stopped.

"Come let me help you up, you're weak from the blood loss, I'll carry you."

"N-no I can-ugh." shemoaned in discomfort as she tried to get up.

He picked her up, besides her prideful manner. "People that are hurt need to accept help when it is given to them."

She didn't want him to read her face and know how comforting it felt to be in his arms so she looked in an opposite direction. It was her mission to not be embarrassed, but she was failing miserably.

"Umm...I can walk now so you can put me down."

"I know that you're lying and even if you aren't why don't you accept this little token of my gratitude for distracting the tarentatek while I was on his back. You risked your life so thank you." he gave her a grateful smile, his eyes gleaming.

She hated his eyes so much! They were so...enticing and alluring andshe tried to break his stare, butitwouldn't let go.

"Besides why should I stop when you're enjoying the ride so much?"

He was right of course, but her dignity was at stake.

"I am not enjoying this ride! I even volunteered to get off, but you wanted me to stay on!"

"You're right. He looked at her again. I-I w-"

Kaleb suddenly had to struggle to stay upright, he blinked to stay focused.

"Kaleb what's wrong? She gave him a angrylook. I am not that heavy!"

"No...it's...not...that."

He stopped and put Bastila down. "Give the...blade to...Freyer...please" he stammered with his eyes half-closed and fell down.

The End

Oh we got a cliff hanger. I'm such a hypocrite because I hate them and yet I use them. I finished this on thanksgiving so I'm stuffed on stuffing and I pigged put on theham and who woulda thunk I'm sleepy.

What! It's 12:02! And I have to get up at 4 something so we can shop!


	6. Dustbowl pt 1

Merry Belated Christmas and Happy New Year everybody! '06!

Anyway on the note of stories I had a slow moment and I just figured out that you can reply to people. Was I the only person who didn't get that memo! But whatever, now that they have this fancy new thigamabobber so now I can reply to everybody that reviews me! Gotta thank the reviewers for taking time out of their day and reviewing my story... so um thanks!

This chapter is pretty much closing Kashyyyk and entering Tatooine so it's a hormonal roller coaster ride, I mean it's drama , drama, comedy of course, and more drama! There will be fluff, but not really close together. I don't know where it is, but it's in there. Oh, and this one starts with a vision that Kaleb has because he blacked out if you didn't catch that in the last chap.

Warning! (Oh my gosh, heaven above help them!) This chapter was so so sooooooooooo long that I had to break it down. I started in late November and it's Jan. So you would have needed to much coffee to have read it.

(Big Smile!) Alright on that note Enjoy and Review! It could be your little present to me! Oh, and sorry that this chapter took a long time too because I just had to go to school. You know they try to get extra work in when you've been out for so long. Bastards.

Chapter 6 

Kaleb didn't know where he was, it was bright and somebody was talking but not clearly. He strained his senses and began to see blurry figures and comprehend their distorted voices.

"_Come on Malak, if the council thinks we're so bad don't you think we're now entitled to have a little fun now?" _

"_I don't know Revan; I'm not really into the idea of getting tattoos." _

"_Aww come on, it'll get you more dates." _

"_What are you trying to say?" Malak's voice was slightly irritated at his remark. _

"_Hey, I'm just trying to tell you that it would be a hit with the ladies. Who knows it might take their attention off your head." _

_Revan laughed at him while Malak grumbled unintelligibly. _

"_Well, I'm going to get one. I'm feeling rebel today." _

Everything around him got quiet and then he felt a sharp pain on his arm.

------------------------

Kaleb yelped in pain as he opened his eyes, but closed them again quickly as the bright light blinded him. He tried to open his eyes again, but they were too sensitive to the overwhelming illumination of the light.

"Kaleb...are you awake?"

A concerned, yet tired voice feminine asked him.

"Bastila? Where am I? He tried to open his eyes once again. And would you turn the damn light off!"

She exhaled and got up to turn the light down. "Thank the Force you're alright. You're in the medical bay."

His sight slowly came back to him as he saw Bastila's face with an angered expression on it.

"Why didn't you inform us that you were poisoned by the tarentatek?"

"Oh that's right He told her with a silly grin. I must have forgot about that."

"Forgot! How could you not remember that you were poisoned!"

Kaleb knew that she was concerned, but he almost died and surprisingly he wasn't in the mood for one of her lectures. I mean he saved her how many times on this planet. Let's recap: the kinrath, the droid, and the injury from the ritual creature. Who even knew how many more times I'm going to have to save her in the future? But right now I'm just going to do what I do best.

"Well to tell you the truth, I was too concerned about you're wound."

She looked guilty for a second, but soon went back to lecturing.

"Well nobody asked you to worry about me! I told you that I was alright in the first place!"

"Okay Miss jedi I can take care of myself, why do you look so distressed?"

"I was watching you in your sleep. You were mumbling and then you screamed from some kind of pain."

"Hmm, first of all I like the fact that I have that ooh has a good secret to tell aura about me and second I think we both know by now why you were staring at me."

"You never give up do you?"

"Sure don't."

She rolled her eyes. "I admit I find you interesting, compelling even, but it's not what you think."

"How are you going to get my hopes up and then shoot me down like that?" He joked while she ignored him as usual.

"Like I was saying I don't understand you. Sometimes you're kind-hearted, but then other times you could care less."

"Hey, I have my ups and downs. He told her nonchalantly. I'm only human. I'm not going to go and pretend to be something I'm not-that's all there is to it. I made a choice that jedi and sith believe they don't have."

He glanced over at her and saw a burning stubbornness in her eyes.

"Why do you ask questions that you won't like the answer to?"

"Because every time I ask them, I learn more about you."

"If you want to know something about me, all you have to do is ask."

"Well, you don't exactly make it easy."

"What? You asking the question or me answering it?"

"What do you think!" she asked agitated.

"That's not answering my question"

She scoffed. "Sometimes both."

He suddenly realized that he was filthy from the Shadow lands.

"Oh! Did you give Freyer the sword? Is Zalbaar free?" He asked frantically.

"Yes, Jolee handled everything and Zalbaar is back on the ship."

He sighed relieved, but suddenly became frantic, rose up, and fell down in pain.

"You have to calm down. She told him sternly. Jolee had to siphon the poison out of your body with a needle."

Kaleb moved the covers and saw a kolto patch on the side of his chest that had newly splotched blood on it.

"See, you opened already! I'll have to re-patch it now." She got up, retrieved some bandages, a new patch from a drawer, and then removed his old ones.

"Ooh, I'll play medic with you anytime, Bastila."

She tied his bandages tightly as he winced in pain.

"I suggest you keep your mind out of the gutter, while I'm playing "medic" with you."

He smiled and tried to talk as best as he could with his wrappings so tight.

"W-What about the slavery ordeal? Did they...go against Chundar and fight back?"

"After Freyer regained his position as chieftain, the Wookies started to revolt against the slavers and are now in control."

"Alright. He told her alleviated. As long as their free."

Kaleb looked up again and smiled at her.

"What?"

"Did you stay up all this time and watch over me?"

Her cheeks pinked slightly.

"I just wanted to know if you would be alright. Anybody else on this ship would have done the same."

"But they didn't. I appreciate your concern Bastila. He smelled his armpits. I don't know how you can stand the stink that must be coming off me. I'm going to go take a shower. You should take one too, you deserve to relax."

"What! I stayed up and watched you all night so I should be able to take a shower first!"

"I was poisoned and you're telling me that I can't get washed up first!"

"It doesn't matter. I'm a woman and we have a special priority when it comes to getting clean."

"Well she's got you there." Mission told him as they both turned around in shock to see the whole crew staring at them.

"Hey everybody! Kaleb exclaimed. Did you know that I recovered too?"

"Not really, but we figured that you must've been feeling better when we heard you too fighting again." Carth told him with a smirk.

"Yeah, she was concerned about me and also wanted to thank me for healing and carrying her when she was down and out. Poor girl stayed up with me the whole night."

They crew barraged them with questions.

"You stayed with him the whole night?"

"You got hurt too?"

"Was the creature a good challenge, because if it was, why the hell didn't you call me!"

"Ok, let's get back to the part where he carried you."

Kaleb took this opportunity to sneak out of the room why Bastila was stumbling with her words to answer their questions.

---------------------

As the hot water was raining down on his head, he took the soap and made a lather to wash her hair. He didn't realize how dirty he was, but hey, it was one of the things had to be done. When he put his head back under the stream of water he felt bad for leaving Bastila to the wolves, but he had told her to that he was getting in the shower first...oh well-.

/Don't even think that you've got away with this/ Bastila yelled through their bond.

/Whoa, speak of the sith! I was just thinking about you. /

/You think you're so crafty don't you/

/Well I know my way around things, if that's what you mean. /

/Stop being so proud yourself! I knew your intentions in the first place/

/Sure, whatever, but you could have told me this when I was finished my shower. If you want to see me while I'm naked you can come in. /

She was heated and he knew it.

/Why are you so impudent! I try to say something to you and it always ends up as a sexual innuendo/

/It's not my fault that you walk into them time and time again. I was trying to be considerate. /

/In what way did you try to be considerate/

/I was being considerate because you're dirty too. So let's kill to tachs with one stone and get clean together. Or maybe we'll be getting even dirtier. / He added thoughtfully.

/Oh, how can you contain all that selflessness/ She asked sarcastically.

/I know it amazes me too, but I'm trying to be a better person. Maybe I'll pick up some trash tomorrow or I don't know meditate.../

/I don't care about what you do as long as you hurry up and get out of the refresher/

/I'm drying off now, but I still have to brush my teeth and we all know that takes forever. Have to get rid of that gingivitis. /

She was about to say something particularly nasty to him, but he closed their bond.

"I can't believe he actually thinks that I'm interested in him! We are supposed to be Jedi and yet he is wasting time that should be spent on this mission!"

She looked at herself and decided that she had to get to the refresher-now. There was mud and who knows what else everywhere; on her face, arms, clothing, and especially her shoes.

"How long does it take to dry off!"

Bastila was about to knock on the door when Kaleb came out with his toothbrush in hand.

"Gosh Bastila, I'm just trying to have healthy teeth and minty fresh breath.

He started to brush the left side of his mouth again.

She was really close to chastising him, but her train of thought was stopped when she looked at his close-to-naked body. He was...well toned, but it was just so much more evident without his armor and just a towel around his waist.

"Why are you looking at me like that? He looked up and down at himself and met eye contact with her again with a raised eyebrow and a smirk. So you were looking at that?"

"No I was not looking there!" She nearly screamed at him.

"Well, you must have because you're getting offensive about it..., but then again you get offensive about whatever I say. Why is that?"

"If you call me correcting your frequent mistakes offensive, then you're more inept then I thought you were."

"See that's another thing you do. He started to move closer to her- still smiling, but she met his moves and backed away. You love to insult me. And as much as you do this, my theory, if you will, is that you don't know how to deal with your feelings for me. You're trying your hardest to push me away, am I right?"

"Jedi do not have emotional attachments so your "theory" is obviously incorrect."

Kaleb had gotten so close to her that she could feel his breath on her neck and the electric tingles that they sent down her body. His towel was also dangerously close to touching her legs as she noticed that he had backed her into a corner. He put one hand on her cheek and the other on the wall to balance himself.

"We'll just have to see, won't we? But that drastic jump in your heart rate was a big hint."

Bastila swatted his hand and pushed him away forcefully.

"What makes you think you know anything about my heart!"

He laughed. "I know that your heart is in control and it knows what it wants."

She gave him an icy stare that made her eyes seem almost black. "I don't think that you've fully grasped the concept of this mission. Innocent people lives are being ended and threatened each day because Malak is unopposed."

"And we'll stop him, but that has nothing to do with now. I'm just trying to reiterate what you told me before. What was it again? Oh yeah; a jedi cannot always control the feelings of the heart."

Bastila immediately regretted her choice of words.

"Just because I said that, it doesn't mean that I cannot restrain myself!"

"I know, because you're doing such a great job at it now"

She was steaming. "How dare you lecture me!"

"So you can lecture me, but I can't do it to you? He waved his finger disapprovingly. Well that's not fair."

"Don't mock me! You let your emotions out every time you get the chance!"

"You're absolutely correct. I do let them out because they're a part of me. If I didn't I would explode. Even if you're frustrated or angry with me when we talk you let something out. I'm the outlet to your feelings. Admit it-you like it."

Bastila was about to go off, when he just grinned at her because she was about to prove his point once again.

Kaleb cupped his hand around his ear. "Did you want to say something to me?" He was smiling hard.

She gave him the most venomous look she could muster, walked into the 'fresher, and slammed the door.

"Good night to you too Bastila!" Kaleb exclaimed to her as he went to find Zalbaar.

"He has no right to judge me! Bastila said out loud while she was in the shower. The way he says it, it sounds like he's saving me when I'm supposed to be redeeming him!"

She was already clean, but being in such a comfortable place helped her calm down and think.

He called her a hypocrite and she couldn't say anything back. When she talked to him, he did bring out anger but also some other emotions she really had to guard against. Her hand ran through her hair as she sighed. Why did he have to constantly have to vex and then share his vile ideas? She did every thing in her power to mentor him, but it just seemed to go out of one ear and out the other. But then she knew he had to listen because he argued against the Jedi ideals.

She sighed again. "Maybe I shouldn't be so hard on him considering his past."

It would was unexpected that his mother had been abused by his father and then he left them. She pressed the off switch on the refresher, stepped out, and wrapped herself in a towel.

Even she was surprised that he had told her, when he was so reserved about his past. Even when he younger and was at the Order he never really talked about his past, but then again he was so... carefree and complacent. A Jedi should be wary of their instincts or they could fall to the dark side, but...there were no signs of corruption in him.

"Why does he have to make everything so complicated! He has to make every single thing difficult when it's painfully clear!"

She grabbed her robe and tied it. "We are supposed to find the Star Maps, get to the Star forge, and defeat Malak. That's all we-"

Someone rapped on the door, interrupting Bastila's sentence. She opened the door slightly to see who was there.

"Oh Force, the one person who could make this day worse. Yes, Canderous?"

"Sorry to interrupt your little confessional princess, but your time is up."

It was too wearying to argue with him tonight so she just walked past him and went to her room..

-----------------------

Kaleb lay in his bunk, unable to fall asleep. "This isn't going to work. I already slept in the med bay." He had talked to Zalbaar and he thanked him for his help in the freedom of his people, but still seemed sad that his brother had to be killed.

The door of the room opened and Carth came in.

"I see that I'm not the only one who can't fall asleep tonight."

"Yeah, I'm just not tired after lying in that stretcher bed for who knows how long."

"Wow, Bastila didn't tell you?"

"She's not really in the talking mood right now."

"Is that right? Carth asked cracking a little grin. Well then what mood is she in?"

"I'm pretty sure she's in kill Kaleb mode right now."

"And that is definitely not a good mode to be in right now my friend."

"Why is that?"

"Because you're going to thank her."

Kaleb scratched his chin. "I'm still not following you."

"She carried you to the ship by herself, did you know that?"

"Bastila, fragile and slim Bastila, carried me-to the ship?" He asked in disbelief.

"Yeah, but it was clearly no small feat for her because she was limping when she got here."

"What! She rescued me! Son of a space slug! That's why I have to thank her?"

"Hey, good idea. He saw Kaleb hesitating. Now."

He groaned as he got up and walked to the door, but stopped trying one last time to give Carth a pleading look. He just pointed to the hallway.

"Go."

Kaleb stomped out of the room like a little child who didn't get a piece of candy he wanted.

"And don't try to act like you talked to her when you didn't." Carth exclaimed after him.

"Dammit!"

"I don't see why I have to thank her tonight." Kaleb grumbled as he walked towards Bastila's room.

He had no problem with giving the thanks were it was due, but she was probably still pissed at him for telling her the truth. As far as he was concerned, she was the one who couldn't follow the jedi rules.

"I'm not going to...let...them"

He could have promised that he heard a strange sound coming from the other side of the ship. He cautiously walked towards the sound.

BAM!

The 'fresher door swung open and hit the metallic wall hard. Canderous came out with an unearthly smell following him.

Kaleb groaned. "What did you do in there?"

"What do you want a play-by-play or should I just get to the good part? I took a shit, that's what happened!"

"Whatever. Kaleb told him dismissing the whole issue. I came around here because I heard a noise-do you know what it is?"

"You mean that annoying whimpering? It's that Mission brat blubbering over something."

"Thanks for the info, but for everybody's sake, close that door."

Canderous scoffed and did as he was told, but not without a snide remark as he left.

Kaleb approached Mission's door, but was nowhere near knowing how to handle this situation.

"This is something the other girls should be doing, but with Juhani never saying a word and Bastila...being Bastila, they would probably only make the situation worst."

He sighed and knocked on the door. "Hey, Mission, is there...something you want to...er... talk about?"

Her crying came to an abrupt halt and she cleared her throat. "K-Kaleb is that you?"

"Yep, I heard that you were upset so I came to see what was wrong."

She opened her door sniffling with lines of dried up tears on her blue cheeks and Kaleb was automatically reminded that she was only fourteen again. She acted very mature for her age, but it didn't change the facts.

"Uh, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

Mission shook her head. "No, it's okay. Besides Big Z, you're probably the only one who would care. He's kinda limited on the responses anyway."

"That's not true. The whole crew would care...except for Canderous, but who cares about him?"

She chuckled, but retained her sad features once again.

"You remember back on Taris when I told you about my brother Griff and his relationship with Lena?"

He nodded.

"Well when we were on Dantoinne, I was wandering around the ship while you and Bastila were inside. I saw Lena and she said...she said such bad things about Griff. She told me that he left me on purpose he said his little sister would hold him back. She sniffed and held her head down. T-That can't be true-right Kaleb?" She asked him with tears rolling down her eyes.

"I don't know what kind of person Griff is and I'm not going to judge him before I hear his side of the story, but I can't see anybody leaving my little sis on a planet-especially Taris."

She wiped her eyes and smiled. "Thanks Kaleb, but can I ask you a favor?"

"Shoot."

"Lena told me that he was on Tantonnie and-"

"I'll personally make sure that we find your brother Mission."

She hugged him and told him his thanks one again.

"No problem, but unfortunately for me I have to apologize to someone or Carth will guilt me to death. Goodnight Mission and don't worry we'll get a chance to get the truth straight from Griff's mouth."

She nodded and shut her door, happy that someone cared.

He started to walk back to Bastila's room, but felt increasingly guilty about lying to Mission. The way that she described him Kaleb wouldn't be surprised if he did leave her to go about his own plans, but she was a kid and didn't need any more disappointments when the destruction of her home planet was still fresh in mind.

"That was a nice thing that you did there, kid."

Only one person called him kid and got away with it.

"All I did was tell her a lie and the last time I checked, that was never a "nice thing".

"Isn't it? If you didn't tell her that you would've made the issue worse."

"And yet if this Griff character is like I think he is then the issue is going to get worse on its own; I've just postponed it for a while."

"So if you knew that, why did you do it?"

"I did it because the truth doesn't always set you free, old man."

"You just don't know how right you are kid Jolee told him as he retreated to his room. You just don't know."

Kaleb ran his hand through his short hair. "Let's get this over with."

----------------------------------------

Bastila was on her bed meditating when she heard a rap on her door. She had internally rolled her eyes and ignored it because she could sense the presence of who was there.

"Hey Bastila open the door, there's something I have to tell you-uggh! My side!"

She opened her eyes when she heard a thud on the ground.

"I told you that you needed more rest, but you never listen!"

Her door slid open as she looked at his body on the ground. "Oh get up! I know that you're not really hurt."

He opened one of his eyes and smiled. "What gave me away?"

"What do you want Kaleb?" She questioned with irritation from their earlier argument still in her voice. I am meditating at the moment."

He got up. "Is that all you do in your room everyday? How boring."

She glared at him. "Well every thing isn't always fun and games is it?"

"Not if I can help it." He told her with a knowing smirk.

"Well that is clearly evident and if you're done, good night."

"Wait! He said a little too quickly. I...uh...wanted to..." Kaleb scratched the side of his head.

"Wanted to...what?" She asked him sternly; losing her patience but still intrigued about his sudden nervousness.

"I wanted to say...thank you."

"I'm sorry, what?"

She had heard what he said perfectly, but loved having him at a disadvantage.

He cleared his throat. "Um, Carth told me that you carried me to the ship when I was poisoned and...Uh...I just wanted to say thank you."

"You're welcome. She said to him trying her best not to grin. Now if that's all" She put her hand near the door's button.

Kaleb was about to just leave it at that, but curiosity got the best of him.

"Hold up, why didn't you tell me that you helped me?"

"Well unlike you, I don't brag about trivial things such as this."

"So you're trying to tell me that you got no pleasure from me saying thank you?"

"Not in the least."

He stared into her smoky grey eyes, shrugged, and then turned around. "Okay."

She narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean "okay"?

"Okay" He scoffed and starting walking to his room.

"You don't believe me."

"I didn't say that. I didn't say much of anything really."

"But you're thinking it."

"Okay." He told her thinking that she was paranoid.

"And there you go again!"

Kaleb faced her. "What are you talking about? I said okay because you're right, so what's the problem?"

"The issue is that you're not telling the truth."

He raised his eyebrow and gave her a quizzical look. "How exactly would you know that?"

"I can...I can just tell!"

He smiled at her. "Okay."

"Would you stop doing that!"

""Doing what?"

"What you are doing!"

"And remind me of what I am doing again?" He asked in an innocent voice.

"You are answering my question with questions and then concluding them with okay!"

He chuckled. "Alright."

"You have no limit to your ignorance, do you? And if you say okay, alright, or anything else to that effect, the force help you. She threatened.

"Not that I know of, but as soon as I find one I'll let you know."

"Now that I've heard this shocking revelation, are you done?"

"As long as you got that I'm grateful."

"Only too well."

"Then, yes, we're done here. Have a good sleep!"

He waved her off as he disappeared down the hallway. Bastila closed her door, turned off her lights deciding that she had meditated enough, and climbed into her bed.

"You just couldn't help yourself, could you?" Carth asked him when Kaleb returned to the room smiling.

"Coulda, shoulda, woulda, but didn't"

"Did you at least thank her?"

He looked at Carth with a fake shocked expression on his face. "I am...hurt that you wouldn't think that I thanked Bastila properly."

"So did you thank her or not?"

"Yeah, I thanked her...more or less."

"More or less?"

"Well, she tried to lie to me to me when I asked her if she liked that I told her I was grateful."

"Well, you knew that she wasn't going to say yes, right?"

"Of course, so I just ended the conversation."

"Ended how?"

"With okay."

Carth chuckled. "If you know you, you said it in the most cynical way possible."

"Yup."

"And then she got mad at you...again."

"Yup."

Kaleb rubbed his head and closed his eyes. "I don't know Carth. I just try to make this stupid mission as fun as possible, but then I get a lecture about how jedi should act. It's like she wants to change the way I am...like you can't be a good person, unless you're a jedi."

"You care if she likes you or not."

"No it's not that...really. She just puts up this cold defense mechanism-why?"

"That's just the way Bastila is."

"But to somebody she's never met before?"

Carth nodded. "You do have a point there. I mean she's not 'little miss sunshine' to us either, but she seems to have a personal vendetta against you."

Kaleb took off his robes and used his sash to tie his pants. "I know one reason why she's always angry with me. It's pretty obvious really."

"Humor me."

"Bastila likes me and she doesn't know how to handle it." He told Carth with a cocky smile.

"Is that so? Do you like her too?"

"I like the challenge of getting something that I can't have."

"Hmm...Bastila is something you can't have and everybody knows she's a challenge. In short you like her."

"When you put it that way...maybe. He climbed into his bunk. Night."

Carth laughed. "Night."

--------------

"How long are you planning to lat there?"

Kaleb snored louder to show her that he slept as long as he wanted to.

"If you want to act childish, then so be it, but we've landed on Tatooine."

"We're here? He yawned loudly and stretched out his arms. Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

"I want to discuss the vision that we...what are you doing?"

"I'm getting out of my bunk, unless that's a problem? He pulled the covers off of himself and stood up. Don't worry, I'm decent...well unless you consider that I don't have a shirt on, but you're a jedi so you'll get over it."

"Anyway, the vision we had, the Force is guiding us-leading us to the Star Maps."

"Uh-huh...yeah. It looked like it was in a cave."

"That makes sense. It would need some kind of protection from the extreme conditions and blowing sand."

"Blowing sand? Please tell me this isn't some kind of desert planet."

"Actually, it is. I suggest you dress lightly, Tatooine is known for being quite arid from its two suns."

"Two suns!- can't we die from that kind of heat!"

"Normally, yes, but we're both Jedi and our companions will have water."

"Well, lucky them."

"I'll leave you to getting dressed."

"I guess. I just need to put on a robe."

He found his blue robe on a container and put it on. "See, I'm done already."

"You're not really going out like that, are you?"

"Why not? It's my robe and you just told me to dress lightly. This is as light as it gets without being naked."

"I did say that, but that robe is used for modesty so at least tie it up."

"Can't do that."

"And what's the problem this time?"

"Since my robe is open I used my sash to keep my pants up. If I take the sash off, my pants will fall down. He rubbed his eyes lazily. I don't understand why it's such a big deal for me to cover my chest, you can hardly see-" He gave her a devilish grin and started sniggering.

"What?"

"I know that you're a jedi and that you've never seen a man half-naked or otherwise before, but come on, you've had to have fantasized about it right?"

Bastila flushed as she felt her face getting hot.

"That is none of your business!"

"So then you have? You rebel, you!"

"I didn't say that!"

"Hey, don't be embarrassed. You're a woman, I'm a man, you're nineteen, I'm twenty-one, and you could cut the tension between us with a knife, so it's perfectly natural for you to be thinking about stuff like that. Kaleb put his hand on his chin. That really explains the crankiness issue, you're sexually frustrated."

"Sexually fru-, that is not true!"

"But do they even have a sex talk for jedis? I can see it now: "Master, I have these...urges when I look at boys. What are they?" He said mocking Bastila's accent and using a high voice.

"And then Vrook would be all: "Bastila, you must stay away from these vile urges by using your meditations, for if you don't it will lead and condemn you to the path of the dark side. Remember there is no passion; there is blah, blah, blah. Kaleb told her using his hand to mimic how long he talked.

"Don't-"

"And speaking of meditating, I can see why you do it so much now."

"I don't meditate be-"

"But since I'm such a nice guy I'll give you the talk personally. Or, we can have a live demonstration right now."

"Kaleb!" She hissed at him.

"That's my name."

"Just...stop...talking." She said through gritted teeth and left his room.

"What? I was just saying what was on my mind."

He sat down on his bed and put on some long black boots. "It's not my fault if she doesn't want to know the truth."

------------

Kaleb walked into the briefing room to see the crew eating, but there was still a depressing aura surrounding the people inside.

Good everybody's here. He thought.

"Well, today on fantasy vacations, we get to visit the beautiful planet of Tatooine! All you have to do to win this; is answer this one and only question!"

Everybody looked at him as he inhaled deeply.

"Who wants to go on a planet that will kill you if you don't avoid the two suns and then wander through a desert wasteland for hours on end searching for a Star Map with an unknown location and then walk all the way back to the ship!" He asked with false excitement.

Carth waved his hand wildly. "Ooh! Ooh! Pick me! I know!"

He looked around, ignoring him.

"Come on, anybody?"

"Pick me dammit!" The pilot told him pointing at himself.

Kaleb looked at him in surprise. "Yes, mister... He looked at an imaginary card. Car-th? Did I say that right?"

He nodded chuckling.

"Yes, mister Carth?"

"Uhhhhh...darn it! I studied for this one all night!"

"Twenty seconds on the clock, Carth!"

"Uh...what is...'I want to go'?"

"Mission show me 'I want to go'!"

She acted like she was looking at a panel. "That is correct Mr. Kaleb!"

"Congratulations Carth! Mission why don't you tell him what he's won!"

"Well, Carth, you of course win the trip to Tatooine, but you also get this..." She grabbed Jolee's cup. "Mug of steamy hot coffee!"

He put his hands on the side of his face in artificial shock. "Oh joy!"

The rest of the crew started to clap and laughed at Carth's amusing reaction and the silly game. To Kaleb's immense amazement, even Bastila, couldn't help but smile.

"Remember folks, everybody's a winner on...what?"

"Fantasy Vacations!" They yelled in response.

"That's right! Don't forget to join us next week! He told them with a huge smile and thumbs up sign. 8:00 p.m., 7:00 central"

The mood lifted greatly as Kaleb got some coffee out of the dispenser. He didn't want anyone to know that he was exhausted from lack of sleep, but these visions were killing him. At first they weren't that bad, but now he could hardly go to sleep without having them and sometimes he didn't even need to be sleeping. Even after the visions were over, sleep just refused to come to him again. It was part fear of having another one and then the questions that buzzed inside his head afterwards. Why did some visions end quickly, while others were long and drawn out? Was Bastila having these premonitions too or was it just him? And the most important question so far, why did almost all of them feature Revan?"

It was the one of the two issues that was an absolute enigma. The second would have to be about his apparent memory...alteration. His recollections weren't loss, he could see the images, but he couldn't remember doing it. Like the tattoo on his arm. He knew where he got it and where, but not when, how it felt, or what the situation was for him to get it. It was all just empty space bubbles in his head.

"Hey, you alright, kid?"

Kaleb turned around to see Jolee's worried face staring at him.

"Yeah, I was just thinking about a couple of things.

"About the visions you're having?"

"Don't tell me I have a bond with you to?" He joked.

"No, but you don't need a bond to see that you're preoccupied with something."

Carth motioned to him that they were ready to go.

"It's time for me to go, but don't worry, old man, I'm fine. Don't waste your last years worrying about me."

He walked past him and left with Carth, Mission, and Bastila.

---------------------

"Arrg! I can't see! My eyes-they burn!"

"Kaleb stop being so dramatic. We are all out here, but you don't see Carth, Mission, or I acting like an imbecile."

"Me is not a...imbecile. Hot I is very."

Carth laughed. "Bastila, what did I tell you about picking on Kaleb. Just because he's a little bit slower than the rest of us, doesn't mean that you can make fun of him."

"Yeah, Bastila...hey!"

Carth laughed even harder as a Cerka employee approached them.

"Hello potential customer, welcome to Tatooine! It seems that you aren't on the docking sheet, so you'll have to pay a 100 credit docking fee."

"I mean could somebody tell me who I need to call to get on these people's docking lists! Kaleb exclaimed as he squinted at the man and waved his right hand lazily. We do not need to pay the docking fee."

"Yes...you do not need to pay the fee...um can I help you with anything else?"

"Yeah, I'm sorta low on credits. I gonna need some good paying work."

"There are three things that I can think of off the top of my head, but they depend on the level of risk you're willing to take. Cerka needs to hire somebody to take care of a Sand People problem."

"Sand people? Who are they?"

Some native tribe on this planet that's making trouble for our employees."

"Is that right? Well, what are the other two things I can do?"

"You could try hunting...but you'll need a hunting permit of course."

Of course. He told him dryly and sighed. Where can I get this permit?"

"You'd have to go to the Cerka office and talk to our representative."

"Check. Next?"

"The last think would have to be the little swoop racing district that Motta the Hutt runs?"

Kaleb perked up. "They have a track? Great! I race a couple of times, win some creds, and become the new champion. It's all good.

"That hunter thing doesn't sound too bad either..." Carth said to him thoughtfully.

Bastila shook her head at them.

"Thank you for the information, but we're actually in quite a hurry so if you'll excuse us."

"No, problem. If you need anything else, just ask me." He left and went to talk to one of his associates.

Kaleb turned towards the girls. "Okay, here's the plan. We're going to go to the Cerka office to find out about Mission's brother and to get a hunting permit, go to the swoop track, find out about this Star Map, and...Then ask why that woman is staring at you Bastila."

She turned around and noticed that there was indeed a Twi-lek woman looking at her.

"Excuse me...I know it's been a very long time dear, but aren't you Bastila, Helena's little girl? She examined her more closely. Yes-it is you! The resemblance is uncanny-especially in the eyes. My how you've grown!"

Kaleb told Carth to take Mission to the office as he stayed with Bastila. He didn't really like the fact that a complete stranger knew her and then claimed to know her mother. He was about to go stand beside her, but an alien with a clipboard was calling him over.

"I am Bastila, yes; I take it that you know my mother?"

"Oh yes. I worked for your father on an expedition years ago. Your mother showed me holos of you before you...well, before you left. Such a pretty little girl you were."

"Is there something I can do for you miss? She asked her an in agitated voice. As you can see, I'm in quite a hurry."

"Oh, I didn't mean to take up your time. The past is the past, but I just wanted to ask you if your mother's condition has improved since I last saw her."

"My mother's condition?"

The Twi'lek gasped with a regretful look on her face.

"Oh, you...you don't know what has happened? I assumed you had already known. The last time I talked to her, she was desperate to find you."

"I have not talked to my mother since I joined the order. Do you know what has happened? Did she...say anything about my father?"

"I'm sorry, dear, but your mother is very ill. She didn't say anything about your father, however. He wasn't present at our last meeting."

"I see. Where did you meet? Do you remember where you last met?"

"She's here on Tatooine, dear. In the cantina. You really should go see her, considering her condition." The woman said as a last resort before she went on her way and Bastila noticed that Kaleb wasn't next to her anymore.

"What! He yelled at some delivery alien. You're putting gizka on my ship! Take them off now!"

"Ok, ok. Let me get the re-order sheet...where is it? Oh well, looks like you're stuck with them. And you might want to watch out. One of my workers dropped a crate and some of the critters escaped.

Kaleb put his hand on his head and groaned.

"What did I do to deserve this?"

He walked over to a dismayed Bastila. "Well we have gizka on board and there's no way I...what's wrong with you?"

"Hmm? Sorry. I am just thinking about my mother. It is strange to hear news about her after all this time. It's quite distracting really."

"Distracting? That's an interesting word to use."

"I don't really look forward to seeing her, but I just can't help but wonder what she wants."

"Curiosity killed the kath hound."

"You're probably right. Perhaps we have better things to do."

"I didn't mean it like that. We should go see your mother, of course."

"I wish that were true, but my mother is not someone you have a friendly chat with. Still it would be worth it to talk to father again."

The two left through the door to Anchorhead.

"Well I would if I could, but my 2:00 is booked solid and it's not looking any better till 5:00."

She smiled. "Far be it from me to ruin your schedule."

He smiled back. "Yeah, well, I told you that I was trying to become a better person, didn't I? Anyway I told Carth and Mission to go ahead to the Cerka and that we'll rendezvous with them later.

Bastila nodded. "No offense, but I can only spend so much time alone with you."

"How am I not supposed to take offense from that? That sentence was singing offense in B minor."

"I make a simple comment and you have to turn it into a big controversial issue."

"Bastila, you're controversial incarnated."

Kaleb suddenly stopped and looked around.

"What's the problem?"

"Alright, I know that we're supposed to go to this office, but...I kinda don't know where it is." He told her smiling sheepishly.

"I should have known."

"What do you mean by that?"

"I meant that you rationalize about nothing, act on your impulses, and then get stuck."

"I have no idea about what you are talking about."

"Figures. We should ask for directions."

Why? We don't need no stinkin' directions!"

Why! Because we are lost. The logical thing to do would be to ask a local resident for guidance."

"Why do you always have to be "logical"? Just once let's just go with the flow."

"So that's your pathetic excuse to not ask for directions?"

"Yup, and I'm pretty proud of it; if I do say so myself."

"Help me understand. Why do men hate the idea of questing someone so much?"

"We don't hate it at all. We just think that walking around aimlessly until we find our location is better than asking. Didn't your dad ever tell you to not talk to strangers? They're not all nice you know."

"Even if a person poses a threat, we're Jedi. I'm pretty sure that we could protect ourselves. Now we're lost so I'm going to ask for directions like any other sane person would do."

"See, that's were you're wrong. We're not lost; we just don't know where we are."

"Kaleb, that is the same thing and you know it."

"Well, technically-"

"This discussion is over. I am right, you are wrong. Accept it."

"I'm won't because I don't see how I'm wrong."

"You're being guided by your foolish manly pride."

"It's been good to me so far, why stop consoling in it now?"

"You're impossible."

"No, you are. I don't even know why I try to get my point across to you; I'm just setting myself up for failure."

"Are you trying to say that I can't compromise?"

"Wouldn't dream of it. I'm just saying that you make all your decisions by yourself. But, hey, if you want to ask somebody so badly let's just ask that woman over there."

"I sense a great aura of desperation is coming off of this woman."

"Yeah, I do too. Something traumatic must have happened to her. All I'm seeing is bluish-red; grief and the need for revenge." He told Bastila as they approached her.

"Excuse me miss, do you know where the Cerka office is? My companion and I-"

"Please will you help me? I have this wraid plate that my late husband acquired. Will you buy it?

"I sure know how to pick 'em don't I?"

"Kaleb!"

He groaned. "You said your late husband died? What or who killed him?"

"I asked everyone in that hunting lodge and they all claim they didn't know, but I do! It was those dirty Gamoreans! They killed my husband in cold blood and every time I see them they laugh and snort at me!"

"Ok, so you don't want vengeance?"

"If you have no way to make money for yourself, you're alone on Tatooine and vengeance won't keep my children and I warm at night or feed us every day. She sighed heavily. I'm not looking for handouts, but I need someone to buy this wraid plate. It's worth at least 500 credits, please, will you buy it?"

"Nope, I don't need a wraid plate, but I'll give you 1,000 credits so that you and you're children can get out of here."

The woman was overjoyed. "1,000 credits! Thank you so much! But please take this plate. It's the least I can do for you."

Knowing that the woman would not receive his money unless he took the plate, he accepted it.

"Oh, right. Do you know where the Cerka office is?"

"Yes, I do. It's two buildings down from my house actually."

"Thanks."

"No, thank you. She told him filled with pure gratitude. And whatever it means, may the force be with you, you've saved us."

Bastila smiled warmly at him. "Thank you for helping this woman. It might not have been a great thing for you, but you've made a difference here."

"I have a soft spot for mothers that selfishly try to help their children. My mom and I went through the same thing, selling our stuff, but nobody helped us."

She wrapped her hand gently around his arm.

He looked at her hand and paused. What do you want?"

"Why do I have to want something?"

"Because you never put your hand around my arm. Now what is?"

"I what was your mother like?"

He grinned at her question. "You did all that just to know about my mom? I don't know what I'm going to do when you want something big, but I can't wait."

"Are you going to answer my question or not?"

"I guess I should start at the beginning. My mom's name was Genevieve."

"That's a lovely name."

"Yeah, and she was worthy of it too. She had to be the prettiest woman you'd ever seen besides you of course."

She turned her face so that he couldn't see her blushing.

"You're trying to hide the fact that you're blushing. And just when I thought that you couldn't get any cuter."

"Can you not focus on the question that I gave you!"

"Well, I'm trying to, but I guess you keep distracting me."

"Look elsewhere then."

"Hmm...No. I think I'm pretty comfortable."

"Look we're here." She said to him, trying to drastically change the subject. We shouldn't keep the others waiting."

"Yeah let's go."

---------------------

"So you're telling me that none of this people in here are giving you any info on Griff?" Kaleb asked Mission.

"Well that woman over there was talking to this angry alien about those Sand people and that a droid would be a peaceful solution, but besides that, she doesn't know anything about Griff."

"Carth, did she see you yet?"

"No, I just waited here for Mission to finish-why?"

"Because I've got an idea and I think the two of us can pull it off."

"Mind sharing with the rest of us?" Bastila asked him, knowing that he was up to something mischievous.

"Not at all. Carth and I are going to be persuasive."

"Persuasive? What does that mean?"

Carth finally caught his drift and started to chuckle. "Now why didn't I think of that?"

He gave Bastila his sabers. "Hold these for me for a sec. This should be pretty quick between the two of us."

"What are the two of you about do?" Bastila demanded more than asked.

"So, what do you want to be good or bad?" Kaleb asked him completely ignoring her question.

"I feel pretty bad right now. You mind going good?"

"Nope, I like it actually. I need that one last jedi good deed for the day."

Carth laughed. "You ready?"

"Born that way."

"Then let's go."

They walked toward the lady leaving Bastila and Mission in a world of confusion.

----------------------

"Hey are you in charge of this outfit?" Carth asked rudely.

"Excuse me, put if you are here for a hunting permit you might as well go home." She turned around. "You should…um."

"It seems that we might have started on the wrong foot here. He gave her a flirtatious smile. Hello, my name is Kaleb and this is my friend Carth."

She looked them both up and down and decided that it might just be a good day after all.

"Y-yes? How can I help you?"

"I don't know. How can you help us?"

Kaleb smirked at Carth's question. Who knew that he had it in him?

"We were told that our friend Griff worked her. Could you direct us towards him?"

The female representative groaned. "Griff has to be the worst employee I've ever seen. He steals from us, slacks off on his work, and he's always late."

"We didn't ask for his progress report, lady. We just want to know where he is."

"That's classified of course. We just can't go and tell strangers about our employees."

"Well, you know our names so I wouldn't really consider us as strangers. Kaleb looked at Carth. Would you?"

"Not at all; in fact I think that we've gotten pretty damn close."

"Be that as it may, I still cannot release that information."

"Maybe you can release some info on these tribes that seem to be giving you so much trouble? I heard from one of your own that you need help and as you can probably see, we're pretty…capable."

She gave them an appeasing look. "Hmm…I bet you two are. Alright, I'll tell you everything about Griff, if you bring me back the Sand People chieftain's gafti. And since both of you are so cute, I'll even throw in a hunting permit for free."

Carth smirked. "Well you're nowhere near plain yourself."

The rep giggled and started to blush. "Well, Griff was last seen at the"

-------------------

"So that's why Kaleb wanted you to hold his lightsabers. He didn't want her to know that he was a Jedi. Mission told Bastila, finally understanding the situation. And by the looks of things, he and Carth's flirting are getting us the information we need."

Bastila nodded at her, but inside she couldn't deny that she felt almost betrayed by Kaleb. She knew that he was only trying to help out, but did he have to do it so well? She suddenly caught herself. This what she was feeling was it jealously? The thought had evaporated as quickly as it came. The Cerka representative was no threat and Kaleb wasn't hers to begin with, but this burning envy that steamed inside her

"Don't worry about what Kaleb's doing Bastila. Mission told her reassuringly after seeing various reactions run across her face. He's just doing it for the info, that's all."

"I'm not worried in the least, Mission. I wouldn't care about his objective either way."

"Right-here they come."

--------------------------

The men walked back to them with smug smiles on their faces.

"Well I know where Griff is, and that ladies is called progress." Kaleb told the two rubbing his chin.

Mission shook her head. "What did you find out about Griff?"

"He's stuck at the Sand People's enclave." Carth said with a certain tone of regret in his voice.

"Griff's in there! I-Is he still alive?"

Kaleb scratched his head. "She didn't know because they lost contact with him weeks ago."

The young Twi'lek's face was a mixture of shock and despair.

"Don't worry, Mission. I know this isn't the best thing to say at the moment, but my bet would be that Griff is a slave, so I'm sure he's not dead. Also we kind of need to go there anyway, because I sorta…promised the rep that Carth and I would bring back the chieftain's gafti, but at least I got a permit." He added quickly.

"Well it seems that you didn't have that much progress if you still have to give her something back in return." Bastila said to him spitefully.

"So she finally speaks, but I don't understand what the problem is. We needed that hunting permit to leave Anchorhead and now we have one. If we just have to get somebody's gafti stick, then so be it."

"And how easy do you think it will be? This person is a chieftain and no doubt has dozens or more people at his whim ready and willing to fight for he's protection."

"Well, then we'll just have to fight them off, won't we?"

"We shouldn't be fighting with them in the first place!"

"They're causing countless bloodshed and killing too many people. Shouldn't your jedi radar being going crazy right about now because I thought you liked to help people, but if you want to be fickle about it..."

"I'm fickle! You are the one who wanted to murder every Cerka employee on Kashyyyk you saw, but as soon as you see a female officer, you two become the best of friends!"

Carth raised his hands between them. "Alright, I'm sensing a lot of tension here, so let's-"

Kaleb was so furious that he didn't even wait to hear his interjection.

"Oh, I'm sure that we'll become much more than that since she gave me her number!"

Carth rubbed his head and groaned. "Not the number Kaleb, anything but the number..."

She gave him a reproachful stare. "Yes, that sounds like something that you would do."

"I would do! What exactly would I do, Bastila! Am I so beneath you and your ridiculous code that I'm not worthy of any further thought then what you've just given me! But hey, since the planet obviously revolves around you, I guess we should keep searching for your mom, huh!" He spat at her and then left the office before she could answer.

"Her mother's on the planet? Wow, small galaxy." Mission remarked softly.

Bastila glared after him in a fiery rage, but soon briskly exited also.

Carth sighed deeply. "Unfortunately, we have to talk to them and even more unfortunate is the fact that you're probably going to have to talk to Bastila."

"Why do I have to talk to her!"

"Because you're a girl, and girls talk about girl issues."

"So? I'm not feeling incentive here."

"Uh... I'll let you drive the ship."

"Yeah, that probably would have worked, if I couldn't just get Kaleb to let me."

"Damn, I just can't get a break here. Okay...I'll talk to Bastila and you can get Kaleb."

She nodded as they left to console their fellow crew mates.

---------------------------------------

"What crawled up her ass and died-again?" Kaleb asked Mission as they walked down the sandy pathway.

"I don't even want to think about that, but I'm pretty sure that she was upset about you talking to that woman."

"I was just trying to get some info on your brother. It was the only thing that Carth and I could do without me wiping her brain and just because she gave me her number, doesn't mean that I was interested in her!"

Hey, I know that, you know that, but she clearly doesn't. And for you to tell her that in the first was like adding fuel to the fire."

"If you're trying to make me feel bad enough to apologize, you might as well forget it. She got jealous and doesn't want to admit it." He said to her being tenacious.

"You're right, but sometimes you have to compromise with the people that are close to you because, come on, you guys do have a bond."

"Ugh!"

"Just look at me and Griff. I know I kinda idolized him before, but I'm starting to consider the fact that maybe he did leave me on Taris. Maybe he didn't want me to go through the same setbacks that he did and wanted me to have a better life."

"Whatever, but anyway you look at it, he abandoned you and I think he deserves a swift kick in the groin."

"I don't want to judge until I see him, but either way I'm still going to try to accept it. He's my brother, you know?"

He scoffed and wiped his head of sweat from the blistering heat.

"You want me to get along with Bastila, but she's not exactly making it easy. Look you're a girl right?"

"The last time I checked."

He smirked at her comment. "But you're easy to get along with though. I mean do girls just get difficult after they turn sixteen?"

"To tell you the truth, I think Bastila might've been born that way."

"I tell you something Mission. Don't ever change and the guys will be all over you...but then I'd just have to kill them all."

She gave him an embellished shocked expression. "Oh no! Not another overprotective man!"

Kaleb put his hands on his waist. "Yes! My quest is to repel all perverts and dirty minds. He laughed. Pretty much anyone like me!"

She laughed too, but then gave him a stern look. "You're still going to have to talk to her, so stop stalling."

"I know, but right now I'm working up the courage. Also it looks like Carth was sent to give the same talk to her. Maybe I'll just wait to he calms her down."

--------------------------------------

"Am I so wrong, Carth! I try to keep Kaleb on track so that he can focus on this mission, but he insists on arguing against everything I say."

"It's natural for two people to disagree."

"Yes, of course, but he's going to destroy an entire race of people, just to obtain the chieftain's gafti?"

"I'm sure that he wouldn't do something like that, and if he had to he would just leave the planet. Anyway, that alien Mission was talking about said that there was a droid at Yurka Laka's place, but I don't think that's the issue. Bastila I was flirting with the lady too."

"It has nothing to do with the two of you flirting; that conduct was inappropriate for a Jedi."

"I don't understand why. It was the only way that we could know something about Griff's brother and get a hunting permit, but for some reason you're angry. Why is that?"

Carth knew that she was really jealous, but telling her that besides her finding that out on her own, wouldn't benefit either her or Kaleb.

"I-I'm angry because he has no respect for the Jedi code. You heard as well as I what he said about it back in the office and then he has the nerve to say that the planet revolves around me!"

"Well, you did provoke him to say it by telling him that getting the rep's number was something he would do."

"He did it, didn't he?"

"Yeah, but he only took it because, if he didn't, then it would have seemed like he wasn't interested in her, which by the way he wasn't. It was just something that the situation called for Bastila, that's all."

She was paused. "I shouldn't have lashed out on him like thatI shouldn't have let my emotions flare like that"

"I don't know about all that, but I think the two of you should talk it out."

Carth turned around and gave Kaleb a signal that showed him she's all yours.

----------------------------

Bastila knew that he was going to approach her about her actions, but she was really not in the mood to argue anymore. The pressure of this mission, Kaleb himself, and then her finding out about her mother, was proving to be too much. She also couldn't keep the possibility of her father being on this planet somewhere either. She had missed him so much and he was still a big part of her heart, despite her Jedi training. But one thing constantly reappeared in her mind: Where was her father if not with mother? She always thought that he was on a new expedition, but then why did that Twi-lek woman say that mother didn't remark on him? Even though this constant battle was going on in her brain, she still had a great hope for the possibility of him being there.

"Thinking about your dad?"

"A little." She told him vaguely.

"Look Bastila, if you don't know, I only talked to that officer because she had some inside knowledge on Griff's whereabouts'."

"I know, Kaleb."

"No, you don't know, because you're sulking and it's obvious that you're mad-why?"

"You are mistaken. I am not angry."

"See, I hate it when you do that! You act like you're not mad when you really are mad and that's makes me mad because you're mad in the first place."

"What?"

"You're lying to me."

"I am not lying to you so why can't you just accept that I'm not mad!"

"Well, one, because you just yelled at me and two, because by now I can tell when you're not telling the truth."

"What have you been reading my emotions!"

"No need, because your eyes give you away every time. He sighed. If I did anything to offend you back there, then you need to tell me so that you don't get annoyed by my actions."

"Why do you care if I'm offended?"

Kaleb scratched the side of his head and flushed slightly. "Don't get the wrong idea, now. I just didn't want this to get in the way of finding your mother."

Bastila gave him a quizzical look. "You look a little pale. Are you alright?"

"Oh, it's nothing. I'm just getting a heat stroke from the humidity here. He flapped his opened robe in complete exaggeration. Whew, it's hot!"

She grinned, because it was too cute that he was trying to cover it up his embarrassment, but decided to let it go.

"Yes, it's not the most comfortable of places."

"I'll be ok-"

She jerked his arm and pulled him against a wall beside her before he could walk on. He looked at her with a pleasant shock on is face.

"I know that you forgive me and all, but all you had to do was ask. I had no idea that you were into the whole "let's see if we get caught in public" thing, but if it excites you, then I guess it's my painstaking duty to oblige."

"Kaleb there are dark Jedi around that corner, so unless you want me to throw you out there headfirst, I would suggest that you close your mouth!" She said to him in a strained whisper.

"How do you know?"

"I can feel the fearsome dark energy that is emitting from them."

"And I didn't...weird."

"Does that really matter right now!"

"They clearly don't know that we're here or they would have attacked by now, so let's just take care of them while we still have the element of surprise."

"They are highly trained assassins that were probably trained by Malak himself! We need to come up with a plan first."

"I'd be glad to, but you're squeezing my wrist so hard, that I'm losing circulation."

Bastila quickly released his hand, just noticing that she held on so long. He rubbed his whitened wrist, motioned Mission and Carth to come over, and then acted like his hands were blasters to show them to get theirs out.

"What's the problem?" Carth asked him while re-loading.

"There's some dark jedi behind this corner and Bastila wants a plan, so I've got one. Bastila and I will go around first to take on the first two and then you and Mission can give us support."

"How do you know that there will only be three?"

"This isn't the first time that this has happened; there were three on Kashyyyk too. He glanced at all of them. So everybody knows what to do?"

They nodded.

"Then it's show time."

Kaleb and Bastila walked around the corner and as expected, the three Jedi waited with stern grimaces on their faces.

"Lord Malak was most-"

Kaleb let out a big obnoxious snore as the leader's eyes were fixed upon him.

"Can we just fast forward to my part? Thanks. Ooh, the big bad jedi are going to take me to Malak for a big reward. I'm sooo scared. Help us, oh please somebody help us." He told them in a monotone voice and then yawned.

Rage ran across their faces like a fire in a field.

"Don't mock us! We were commanded to only keep Bastila alive, so I'm sure that your death will be of no consequence." The second man who had a long, thin scar across his face told him sneering.

"Well since you're not going to get anywhere near her, you'll have the extreme honor of fighting me."

"Honor? In fighting some companion Jedi with no importance? Don't make me laugh!"

"I wouldn't think of it, but you're entertaining the crap out of me. Fortunately I won't have to look at any of your faces much longer so if you don't mind, let's get this over with.

He powered his sabers.

/Don't forget to use force resistance. It'll only make this fight easier. /

/I had no intention of fighting without it, Kaleb. /

/You're welcome, Bastila. /

He used the force power himself, but also altered his speed.

Yeah, this should have this fight over pretty quickly.

He sped toward the two of them and attacked with deadly precision and speed. Both of their attacks were easy to block and since he was striking them so fast, the lesser of the two fell down with a yelp from having his chest pierced through.

Bastila was trying to concentrate, but his words kept coming back to her. Of course he had protected her before, but this was the first time that he declared it-no, she couldn't accept it no matter how good it made her feel to be cared about. They might've had a bond, but if he guarded her...there would be an expected closeness that she didn't want to have with him.

Kaleb sprinted behind the first jedi's back and carved through him and then sprinted back to the last jedi that she was fighting and blocked his charge on Bastila in the same instant.

"Pay attention! He almost hit you!"

Carth and Mission suddenly appeared and let out a stream of blast on the last jedi as it was to busy to block them. He let out some anguished cries, but crumpled to the ground.

"Are you two alright?" Mission asked with a concerned expression.

"Yeah, are you two okay?"

"We didn't even get hurt. It looked like you could have taken care of them yourself."

"I'm not so sure, Carth. I don't think I could have lasted much longer while moving that fast in this heat."

He bent down and started to collect the fallen jedi's valuables when a Duros came out of nowhere.

"That...human woman! I am...outraged at her arrogance. He faced Kaleb. You! Do all of your species put themselves on annoying pedestals!"

"I'm sorry?"

"You should be for sharing a species with that...creature. I swear Helena must be your name for "pit rancor".

"You seem pretty hateful towards other species."

"What? No...But you don't understand. That, woman, I think she didn't like us breathing the same air. You'd think she was queen of the planet."

The ice princess's mother being the queen of the planet...yeah sounds about right and it would definitely explain a couple of things.

"No offense, but your companion there looks especially like her." The alien said as he pointed to Bastila.

"The messenger said my mother is on Tatooine, somewhere. We should ask him about her."

"If that is your mother, you have my sympathies. She's driving the regular's out as we speak."

Kaleb nodded. "Is she still there?"

"Probably. I don't think anybody else could top her attitude, so she won't be leaving anytime soon, but I won't be going back there though."

"We should go to the cantina. I doubt she wants to be kept waiting."

"You're actually looking for her! The alien asked in shock, but started to retreat. You humans-you're all crazy!"

"Your mom has certainly left an impression."

"She has the ability to do that, but I don't think it can be fully understood until you meet her."

"Hey, don't get so down. I had to meet your mom sooner or later, but don't worry, they love me."

"What makes you think that this talk has anything to do with you?"

"I'm already here, so I was thinking that we could get the whole meet the parents' thing out the way."

"Meeting my par-that isn't the reason for me seeing my mother!"

Kaleb stood up and started walking.

"Kaleb!"

He ignored her and kept going. Mission came up to her.

"Face it, Bastila. He's going to meet your mom, whether you like it or not."

She began to follow him up the sandy pathway.

Carth passed her also and laughed. "Good luck with that, though!"

-----------------------------------

Kaleb's eyes had to adjust to the low lighting of the cantina.

"First it's too bright and now it's too dark. This planet is so messed up, on so many different levels."

He looked around and saw that everybody seemed to be having a good time, but he also noticed that some people were looking at his and Bastila's light sabers.

"There she is. Bastila replied emotionlessly. In the back."

Kaleb examined her and was surprised. The only thing that Bastila and her mother really shared was their eyes. Besides that he would have thought her a completely different person.

The two walked towards the back and Mission was about to follow until Carth stopped her.

"Hey, Mission, you should help me get some gizka poison for the ship."

"Aw, why? I'm going to miss the good part."

"You said that you wanted to fly the ship, so you have to take care of it too. Anyway it's none of our business, now come on."

She groaned as she turned around and followed Carth.

"Hey mom!" Kaleb exclaimed as soon as he was close enough.

Helena looked from him to Bastila. "Yes, I'm sorry. Do I know you?"

"I am here mother or don't you recognize me?"

"What do you expect when I haven't as much as seen a picture of you since I left? Do you know how long I've been trying to find you?"

"You knew as well as I that communication would be impossible I joined the order. Now what is this all about? Where is father?"

"Then you haven't heard. I should have known."

Bastila's eyes widened in panic. "Has something happened to him? Are you going to tell me or not!"

"Your father is dead is Bastila. Helena told her in a solemn tone. That is part of the reason why I was looking for you."

She paused and put her hand on her heart. "Dead? What happened? What did you do to him!"

"Well isn't this a lovely reunion? Already she's flinging insults at me. Tell me, I'm guessing that she's one of your friends. Do you talk to your mother like this?"

"You don't have to tell her anything, Kaleb." Bastila said to him trying to spite her mother, but also because she cared about his well being.

He closed his eyes. "My mother died a long time ago, but, no, we would have never argued like this."

"Well I'll be joining her soon enough."

"I was told that you were sick. Are you actually dying or is this just melodrama for my benefit?"

"Such sweet things you say! Her mother sighed. Perhaps I should tell you everything, before we start to argue again."

"You could start by telling me what you got father into that got him killed." She demanded in an accusatory tone.

"So you're pointing your finger at me already? I never realized that Jedi were so spiteful. You want me to tell you that I brought your father here for another expedition, don't you? You want to blame me for his death?"

"The only thing I want is to know what has happened to my father."

"You never could accept that your father loved going on his treasure hunts; leaving you alone with me. Helena scoffed. I was always to blame for everything, what else is new? So yes, fine. I brought your father here to look for the krayt dragon pearl. He took an expedition into the Tatooine desert and he died."

"How can you be sure if this! Father was an experienced-"

"Do you think I would waste my time looking for you, if I wasn't sure? They were attacked by a krayt dragon, Bastila. One of the guides fled the battle; he saw your father killed!"

"I see. So what do you want from me? Credits?"

"Don't be insulting! I want you to use those senses of yours. I want you to find and bring back his holocron."

"Why? So you can sell it?"

"Is it too much too ask that I have something to remember you're father by? Of course it is, isn't it? You couldn't be bothered."

"Well once again, mother, you don't know the full story. We are very busy with a mission from the Jedi council. I doubt I'll have the time. Ask my companions if you doubt me."

Both she and Helena looked at Kaleb.

"Oh, is it my turn? Um Ms Helena? Why don't you just get it yourself?"

"As my daughter was so quick to point out, I haven't the coin to raise another expedition. Nor am I the adventurer my husband was."

"Bastila, I know that you at least would want to find your father's remains."

"And what remains would there be? She asked him curtly. Krayt dragons are enormous predators that can easily devour a human. Also the desert is a harsh environment. Finding my father remains would be even more impossible than obtaining his holocron. An ignoble end to a fine man."

"You should at least do it because your mother is sick."

"I don't see what that has to do with what she's asking. She remarked maliciously. Are you actually sick mother?"

"What difference does it make? None to you, I'm sure. Just find your father's holocron and you won't have to worry about me either way."

"That's the kind of response that I would expect. We'll look for it, if we have time. I can't and won't promise you anymore than that."

"I believe your father was headed north towards the Sand People. I would check along that route, dear. Please, do hurry."

Helena turned around as if this conversation was a figment of her imagination and Bastila walked to the front of the cantina, waiting for her companions with her arms crossed. Kaleb rubbed his head as he approached her.

"Well, that wasn't that bad."

Her gaze met his and he saw an absolute and heavy tiredness in her eyes.

"You're right, it was much worse."

"Well, do you want to talk? Come on, it'll make you feel better."

"About my mother? I am unsure. I seem to find it difficult to remain objective when it comes to her. I find that disturbing."

"I don't see why. You don't want your mom to have the holocron when she was the one who put his life in jeopardy. It's a natural emotion."

"I shouldn't be like this though."

"How should you be exactly?"

"I need to try and center myself. I shouldn't I can't do anything drastic, not yet anyway."

"Here's the million credit question. Do you think we should find it for her?"

"We have more important things to do."

"No we don't. That Star Map isn't going anywhere, anytime soon, and I don't mind."

"That's nice of you to say. If we find his holocron it doesn't exactly mean that I have to give it to her."

"Why do you think she wants it so badly?"

"Father recorded all his personal thoughts in that holocron, even when I knew him. Having it would be like having him with you. But I don't see why she deserves to have it, however; she drove him to his death. I loved him and I didn't even have a chance to say goodbye."

"When we get it-would you keep it for yourself?"

"I really don't know. Part of me would keep it just for the sake of her not having it. I I don't like that part of me. She sighed. I would have thought that my Jedi training would have put me past this kind of pettiness."

"I don't think that you're being petty. At least you're considering giving the holocron to your mother. Most people wouldn't even do that, but I guess that you might just be worried about her illness."

"I still have my doubts as to whether she's actually sick."

"Why would she lie about something like that?"

"Mother used to lie about many things to get her way. She is a selfish woman who pushed my father into doing only what she wished."

"You sounded very bitter when you said that."

"Yes I thought I had let it all go, but it came back so quickly. And now father is dead. That leaves a hurt inside that you you just can't imagine."

"You're wrong. I know how it feels to lose the most important person in your life. To feel like there's a black hole inside of you that's sucking you in too fast, but painfully slow at the same time."

"Your mother I-I'm sorry, Kaleb."

"It was a long time ago and we're supposed to be feeling sad for you right now."

"What do you think I should do?"

"Whoa, you want my opinion on this?"

"I asked you, didn't I?"

"I think that you should give her the holocron, but only because I want you and your mother to work out your differences. Life can be snatched away at any given moment; you shouldn't waste it by arguing. I gotta admit that I was sorta surprised that you didn't automatically say we should give it to her. It's strange, but for once I'm happy that you're being selfish."

"I am being selfish, aren't I? I just can't seem to help myself."

"If you weren't being selfish, I would be scared. I don't know, this is probably pretty bias of me, but maybe you should take it. Like you said you loved him more than anyone else would; he would want you to have it, right?"

"Yes maybe. I still don't feel good about it. I wish I really don't want to think about this. Please let's just keep going."

"Sure, and take as much time as you need."

She nodded forlornly and silently walked outside grimly thinking that there wasn't that much time in the world.

"We found some poison for those gizkas. The bartender told us that if one of them drinks some of it, it will fight and then infect another one." Carth told him as soon as Bastila left.

"In summary, they'll be killing themselves?"

"You got it."

"Hey, thanks. At least one problem can be solved easily. We should go. The sooner we do all that have to, the sooner we leave this planet."

----------------------------

Bastila felt like she was going to fall apart into a billion pieces. She didn't know what was inducing her to keep walking, when her knees where going to give out on her and every step she took was as heavy as a lead block. There was no way, which she could discover, to handle this intense grief that was plaguing her. Meditation would have been her only release, but concentration on the code was out of the question and failure was her answer every time. Right now, the only thing that took precedence was the need to keep herself from breaking down and crying on the sand.

------------------------------

"I hate these stupid suns!" Kaleb screamed in aggravation while blocking there dazzling rays.

"I couldn't agree with you more. I have sand in places that I don't want to think about."

"Carth, I have sand in places I never thought I had."

He laughed, but Mission just kept glancing at Bastila walking alone.

"Is she going to be okay, Kaleb?"

"I can't say. She told me that she didn't want to talk about it anymore, o I respected her wishes."

"You know that you shouldn't listen, right? She needs somebody to talk to."

"Yeah, but I guess I'm not the one. When my mom died, nobody talked to me and I preferred it that way."

"I'm sure that Bastila wouldn't mind. The two of you could help each other."

"Sometimes, silence and alone time is the best thing for people, instead of barging in asking questions that even they can't understand or answer."

"I suppose you're right. I don't know what I would do if Griff died."

"And you never will because I'm sure that he's not dead. Let's get over to that droid shop and get a translator."

Kaleb up to where Bastila was. "We're going to the droid shop. You don't have to rush though; you can catch up with us later."

"I'll be alright. Let's go."

---------------------------------

"What is this? A customer I don't recognize? Perhaps you bring off-world money to Yurka Laka?"

"We'll find out. I heard that you have a droid that can translate the Sand People language."

"You are lucky to come at this time. I have just taken possession of the droid that you are talking about. An HK-47. It's a fine protocol translator and I think it's been modified. It has claimed to understand the Sand People dialect and also has some armor mounds. Combat ready perhaps?"

"Hmm I have a few questions about it, if you don't mind."

"Of course not. Let me just say that every function I've tested, has performed perfectly. Those that I could find anyway "

"Those that you could find? You really don't seem to know too much about the droid, do you?" Kaleb asked him warily.

"Uh the unit has been a little uncooperative. They get that way when they go to long without a memory wipe."

"And if it proves even more "uncooperative" when we purchase it?" Bastila interjected, to Kaleb's immense surprise.

"You can leave it alone if you find its mannerisms amusing. It might be a little eccentric, but it's stable."

"What does the HK-47 designation mean?"

"Haven't got a clue. It doesn't match any protocol or utility standard. I assume that it is a retired model. I'd tell you to ask it itself, but as I said before, it's pretty stubborn. Quality construction, though."

/This alien doesn't know a thing about this droid. I don't trust him. /

/Oddly, he isn't lying and we do need it to translate for us. /

/I guess I'm just gonna have to take a risk. /

"Let's say I'm interested in the droid. How much are you selling it for?"

"Times are rough right now, so I'll give it to you for 5,000 credits."

"You've got to be kidding! You want 5,000 and you can't even get it to function to its full capacity?"

"You're right. I did start the price off kind of high, but some people just jump for it. I'll cut it down to 4,000. Not a credit lower!"

"And I can't get you to go any lower?"

Yurka shook his head.

"Ok then, I'll be back later."

He turned around to the rest of the group.

"I'm a little short on money since my little good deed so, damn it all, I guess we're going to have to go to the swoop track." He remarked trying to hide his excitement.

"You're impossible. I know that you want to race."

Carth snapped his fingers. "Wow! Nothing gets past you, Bastila!"

"Your sarcasm is not appreciated, Carth."

Kaleb laughed. "Most of the time, it's not supposed to be, but we're going to the track."

"And who decided this?"

"Besides me and Carth; Mission, of course."

"Huh?" She asked; startled from her own thoughts.

"Let's be fair here. Mission, do you think that I should race so that we can buy this droid and get your brother released?"

"Sure why not? The times you placed on Taris against real pros should make this district a breeze. "

"See Bastila, that's true support. Why don't you try it sometime?"

"The only reason that you're getting your way is because Mission wants to rescue her brother." She told him as they left the shop.

"Stop being such a sore loser."

"There is nothing to be sore about! You cheated by using her relationship to Griff!"

"Me? Cheat? He gasped loudly. Never! But if somehow this great accusation was to be true, it got you out your bad mood. You got your own personal dark cloud hanging over your head one second and then you're back to arguing with me the next second. He smiled and shook his head. You're a mystery."

"And you're very pushy, do you know that?"

"I am I too pushy or are you too evasive?"

"You're definitely too pushy."

"And this regal quality of mine, offends you?"

"I wouldn't exactly call it regal."

"You didn't exactly answer me."

"I'm not sure."

"There you go again with the vagueness."

"How am I being vague? I told you that I didn't know. That's pretty straightforward in my opinion."

"What you answered me with is something I like to call half-assed remarks. They give you an answer, but then it's not a full one. How long are you going to keep up this invisible wall between us?"

"Invisible wall?"

"You have a translucent wall up. I can see you, but I can only get so close."

"Are you trying to get closer?"

"Am I allowed to?"

"Even if you claim that you aren't a Jedi, it doesn't change the fact that you are. Let's leave it at that."

"There is no fact that I am one. Somebody could put a label on my head that says ugly, but that doesn't automatically doesn't make it correct."

"Are you trying to say that the Council labeled you a Jedi instead of making you one?"

"I'm saying that the Council doesn't have the power to make somebody do anything. They can only label the person and hope that they do the right thing. I should at least know you as a companion and a bond-mate, despite you being a jedi or not."

Bastila was silent and he scoffed.

"Frustrated?"

Kaleb shrugged. "More like intrigued."

"Intrigued?"

"Yeah. It's fun trying to figure you out. It's a challenge."

"What are you trying to find out?"

"Aren't we full of questions today!"

"You're avoiding my question."

"Sure am, but the answer hasn't revealed itself yet."

"And why hasn't it?"

"My bet is that it's not ready."

"Or it could be that there's nothing to reveal."

"Ah, but where's the fun in that? It seems to me that since both of us are an enigma to the other, we see only what we want to see. Pretty much, we're either perfect or disastrous in each others eyes and if we do share something, it goes without thought, explanation, or reason."

"When two people know too much about each other, it can only complicate things."

"Knowledge about one another can only enlighten."

"Yes, but ignorance is bliss."

"What you see is what you get with me."

She was quiet once again as they reached the swoop registration building. He gave her a confident smile.

"I guess its champion time again."

-------------------------------

"So, you beat the first two tiers already, huh? I should have known that you were trouble. Motta the Hutt told him. Now you only have to beat the last tier and beat Zori Bafka's time of 22:51 and you'll be the new champ."

"I got this race in the bag. The other ones were good practice, but I'm ready for the real thing."

"Kaleb, why are you so insistent on finishing this last race? We already have enough money to pay off the droid."

"Hey, you never know when we might need more money and I already came this far, why stop now?"

"You've gone through two races straight in a row in less than a hour. You'll be over exerting yourself for no reason!"

"You don't think that I can do it?"

"I didn't say that."

"Then stop thinking it. We do have a bond you know. I can't be feeling insecure when I'm out there."

She knew that there was no way to dissuade him when he got like this and sighed.

"Good luck."

He nodded and gave the Hutt the 100 credit maintenance fee.

"Great! Let's get you out on the track."

-------------------------

Kaleb cracked his neck, flexed his fingers, and leaned back into the leather seat. He had to admit that Davik had style in swoops. The one that he had ridden in Taris had a patched cloth seat, cramped space, and the worse smell from the new added prototype accelerator. The old swoop was not equipped to handle it, but that Ithordian mechanic was a whiz at his trade and, somehow, made it work. He gave a thumbs-up to the crew outside to show that he was ready.

One of the men nodded quickly as all of them went back inside the booth. He put his hands on the steering wheel and gripped it hard.

Beep!

The red light flashed and he exhaled.

Beep!

The yellow light beamed at him and he smiled. His foot was positioned right above the gas pedal as time seemed to stop.

Beep!

He jammed his foot on the gas as sand whirled behind him from the force of the engines. He headed for the first speed booster, but then made a wide left to reach the second one. This would slow him down, but it would be worth it because it made an easier access to the third booster. The track was already memorized by him, but he still had to reach almost all the boosts to beat the female Twi'lek's time. He flicked one of his overhead engine sensors, slammed the hyper drive button, and switched gears in one rapid motion. The swoop went even faster as he veered away from the debris and veered back to catch the fourth booster.

The next boost was only about two or three feet away, but to get to it fast enough without losing the swoop's momentum he would have to switch gears again. It was a risk, but, if he remembered correctly, there was booster right after the one he was going to get on. Sweat dripped down Kaleb's forehead as he changed gears before the meter told him to. It slowed him down critically, until he hit the two boosts and jammed the pedal, once again. He thought he had actually gotten away with it until a loud crash resounded around him and the swoop went into a drag.

"Shit!"

The two boosts had led him right into a metal obstacle, which he couldn't avoid from the blazing speed he was going at. Kaleb slammed his hand against the hyper drive button as soon as the meter beeped. There were two boosts in front of him, but they were in different lanes. He stayed on the right and quickly glanced at the timer.

"22:48...got make this quick!"

The pedal was pushed down as far as it could go.

22:50

He sped over the boost so hard, that the whole swoop shook violently. Only inches away from the finish line, whether he lost or won was all connected in this moment. Kaleb closed his eyes.

---------------------------

"With a time of 22:51, the new Tatooine racing champ, Kaleb!"

He came through the doors to hear he was getting a standing ovation and bowed.

"Thank you, thank you! Oh no, you're too kind!"

He spotted Bastila, pointed to her, put his thumb and pinky up to his ear, mouthed the words call me, and winked.

She let go of the breath that she didn't know that she was holding in a slow relief. Mission ran up to him as Carth followed close behind.

"Kaleb, you were great! I was worried that you weren't going to make it when you hit that debris, but then you just regained speed and zoomed past the finish line."

"Thanks. I had to take the risk of changing the gears a little prematurely or I might not have made it."

"Whatever. Carth dismissed with a big smile on his face. I think we all know that he just wanted a showy finish. It would have been too boring if he just won it like the others."

"Come on, Carth. I told you to keep that a secret."

He turned around to see Bastila behind him.

"So did you enjoy the show?"

"It was very...um...good."

"Do you know how much you suck at flattering someone? But I'm sure that they weren't really big on praise at the academy, so, hey, I'll take whatever I can get."

A particularly attractive female groupie came up and tapped Kaleb on his shoulder.

"I love men that are quick...at racing that is. As soon as I saw you, I knew that I had to get your autoprint...or something. She added with a naughty smile.

He chuckled nervously because he remembered the last time he talked to a pretty girl very well and he did tell Bastila that he wouldn't do it anymore.

"Yeah…can we take a rain check on that? I'm so tired that I might drop down on the ground and die."

The woman raised her eyebrow. "Is that right? Well, I'm sure that I can make you feel a whole lot better."

Man, this woman does not give up. "Uh…no, that's okay. I just want to-"

Bastila stepped beside him, knowing that he was having a hard time, and took one of his lightsabers out.

"Excuse me...ma'am she said detesting her very nature. This man is a Jedi so I'm sure that there is nothing that you can…do for him.

The woman looked her up and down, scoffed, came up next to Kaleb; whispering something in his ear, and then left with out giving her a second glance. Bastila glared after her, but then quickly returned her attention back to him.

"You should go and get your prize from Motta."

He nodded, just choosing to drop the whole thing, and walked over to the Hutt to see an annoyed expression on its wide face.

"Here, take your bonds; hopefully they'll be the last that I give to you. Don't take up the track with rec races."

"You don't have to worry about that. I'm done with you and this rundown track. I'm the champion, couldn't get any higher, so now you're back to being your useless self. But hey, don't worry, I'm sure you'll remember how; it wasn't that long ago."

He walked away with a smirk. "Come on. Let's go get that droid."

-----------------------------

"You! You're the one! You beat Zori Bafka's time? I have to get your autoprint!"

"Um…who are you?"

"I'm Ganda Kaitoova, and I must say you're fast…for a human. Once the races are running regular again, you'll be famous…or at least maybe you will."

"There are no maybes with me. I always win or I die trying."

"Well, that is good because if you start wining on the real tour, I want to be able to say that I saw you when you were just starting out. How about it?"

"What kind of person would I be to deny a fan?"

"Really? That is great of you; you'll be a fan favorite. Some racers sell their prints, but that is just rude. Here, just put your hand on this pad."

Kaleb put his hand on the pad and a little light flashed beneath it.

"Thanks again. I know I'll be seeing more of you human."

"No problem." He told him as he the Twi'lek walked off.

"You hear that, Bastila? I'm a star!" He exclaimed as he looked up at the sky with a big, goofy smile.

"I don't think that you should have given your autoprint to him."

"Why must you constantly burst my bubble?"

"I am not trying to burst your bubble; I'm only saying that he could have been hired by Malak to track where we are."

"Yeah, I can see Malak wanting my print."

"And that's exactly why I don't tell you anything. You always have to make every remark into a little joke."

"You're uptight about everything."

"I am not uptight; I just know when it's time to be serious."

"So that's…every hour of the day?"

"No, it is not every hour of the day!"

"I bet that even your dreams are regulated. "No, that tree should be brown, the sky should not be orange, and what is that kath hound doing floating in the sky!"

He laughed as she glared at him. "My dreams, which should be none of your business anyway, are as regular as everyone else's."

"So what do you dream about? Me, right?"

She scoffed. "In your dreams."

Carth laughed as he patted Kaleb on the back. "Keep on dreaming, buddy. Keep on dreaming."

-----------------------

Yurka looked up as the party arrived in the droid shop. "You're back! And I heard that you're not only a swoop jockey, like my brother, but that you're the current champion too!"

"Aw, it was an easy win; no sweat."

"Well, my offer still stands for the HK-47; 4,000 credits and its all yours."

"It's a deal." Kaleb gave him the money as the aliens eyes widened.

"Whoa! You weren't lying. Alright, you can go to the back and claim him."

The group went to the back and he addressed the droid.

_Statement: I see you have purchased me, master. I find this a satisfactory arrangement. _

"Yeah, I am known to satisfy." He told it glancing at Bastila.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me."

_Statement: My restraining bolt will be deactivated when you take possession of me. Am I to accompany you now, master? _The droid lifted its blaster in an offensive stance. _I have been condemned in this shop for far too long and I long to engage in some unadulterated violence. At your command, of course, master. _

"Yeah, come with me now."

Bastila groaned. "It's going to be like having another Canderous around. Do we really need two people who like the act of killing so much?"

"Well, I've discovered that those are the best kind of people to have around when you're outnumbered. Come on, we should keep going."

They left the shop and starting heading for the barricade.

_Query: Why is this Canderous organic being compared to me? I can assume, without a doubt, that I have far better assassination skills than any meatbag will hope to posses. _

Kaleb chuckled. "I like this droid already."

"How can you like it?"

"It has personality and it expresses itself without restraint."

She put her hand on her hips. "Was that a stab at me?"

"I have no idea as to what led you to believe that. He turned back to HK. So you know the Sand People language?"

_Answer: "Unfortunately, Master. It is no honor to have such a barbaric tongue in your database. _

"Woah, master is way to formal; you're not my slave. There's no need to call me that; my name's Kaleb."

_Query: No need? I was under the assumption that organic meatbags, such as yourself, enjoyed such forms of address. _

"That's the second time I've say that. I'm kinda taking offense from it because I'm guessing that it's not the most flattering thing in the world."

_Retraction: Did I say that out loud? I apologize, Master. While you are a meatbag, I suppose I shouldn't call you such. _

"You just called me a meatbag...again!"

_Explanation: It's just that...you have these squishy parts, Master. How the constant and infernal sloshing doesn't drive you mad, I have no idea. _

"I really did not need to see that image."

_Statement: Consider yourself lucky, Master, that it was just an image. The plights of my existence are formidable, but surely they do not compare to the plights of yours. _

"I survive somehow, but just stop calling me master and meatbag; it's driving me crazy."

_Suggestion: I am programed to perform all kinds of psychological assistance, Master. Do you require some? _

"Yeah, I'll take some sessions. Right after I throw you into a trash heap."

_Objection: But, Master! Am I not far too useful to be thrown aside in such a casual manner? Can I be faulted for my perfect artificial constriction? _

"Yes, yes you can. The last thing I need, is a lippy droid."

_Analysis:Referance: 'lippy'...arguementive, disputatious, contentious, quarrelsome. What! I must object, Master, this is untrue! _

"How is that untrue! Meatbag isn't considered lippy these days?"

_Amendment: Then I will endeavor not to refer to you by your meatbag status in the future, Master. Does that suffice? _

"No!"

_Query: I am confused. 'No' you do not want to be referred to as a meatbag or 'No' it does not suffice? _

"Are you being sarcastic or are you deliberately trying to insult me!"

_Answer: Deliberation implies some form of intent, Master, when I only I am only stating fact. _

"Alright, I'm going to say this nice and slow for you. I...don't...like to...be called... a meatbag."

_Query: Perhaps you would prefer the term liquidous fleshbag? _

"Hey, I got one; just popped in my head too. Get ready for it now, how about...human."

Carth gasped. "Kaleb, how could you come up with such a term so quickly?"

"Well, you know, the usual. Years and years of complex and in-depth studying."

_Objection: But...but that technical term does not accurately portray the vast amount of bulbous slushiness present in you're bipedal form! _

"Let's change the roles a bit here. What if I called you scrap or...uh...junk?"

_Resignation: Very well, Master. You are a harsh, harsh taskmaster. I like you more already. _

"That's great, and you know what would be better? If you stopped calling me master."

_Statement: It is not that I don't want to, Master, but the fact that I cannot. It is demeaning, but I manage well enough. Thank you for the concern, Master. _

"So what, now I'm not good enough?"

_Statement: How would you like to be wholly owned servant to a...human. It's insulting! It...uh, you weren't one yourself, I mean... _

"I insult you?"

_Qualification: Err...perhaps I did not meant it quite_ _like that, Master. I mean, while an artificial life form is superior - _

"You might as well give up, Kaleb. It's in his programing, so he's not going to stop calling you master." Mission told him as they neared the exit.

"Well, it's better then being called a meatbag. He spotted a Jawa. _That man said that we could try to ask the Jawas about the Star Map, he it looks like it may know something. _Uh, excuse me. Do you know anything about Star Maps?"

The little Jawa looked up. "You speak of something that needs to be found and know of it I do. As Iziz, you are, leader of your tribe?"

"Leader of our tribe? Carth scoffed. Well that's a new one."

Kaleb looked at him, confused to no end. "You understood it?"

"Yeah, it's fast, but you just have to catch the important parts."

"Help I need and then if you succeed, help I give you. People of my tribe have been captured by giants of sand."

"Ok, I understood that one. I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that the giants of sand are Sand People and that you want me to save your companions from them."

"Yes, cruel fate is given to them when it is not deserved."

"If I do this will you tell me where the Star Map is?"

It nodded.

"I don't know, this seems a little too convenient."

"It does seem that way, but you have no reason to disbelieve this creature." Bastila reassured him.

"So we're going to do it?"

"I don't know. For a Jawa to automatically know what we're talking about and also know where to direct...it is a bit odd. You shouldn't be so naive, Bastila." Carth argued.

"So we're not doing it?"

"I am not being naive. I simply sense no deception from this creature."

"Are we or aren't we!"

"Oh, see, you should have said that in the first place. Jedi senses, I trust; lucky assumptions, not so much."

Kaleb glanced at both of them to see if either would change their mind. "So, it's decided. We're going to help, right?"

"Yes."

"Sure."

Ok. We'll be back when we free your people, Iziz."

"Iziz, hopes you have the luck you need."

-------------------------

"Just when you think it couldn't get any hotter and I just that I might be- aw sith spit! It's too hot for me to even come up with a smartass remark." Kaleb exclaimed out loud in a raspy voice.

"Well, at least this heat is beneficial for something."

_Acknowledgment: Humans are so poorly equipped for any kind of extreme weather. May I suggest, Master, that you get cybernetic implants? _

"And while I'm getting those, I'll have them install a mute button on you."

"Hello there. You're heading out to the desert? You're a hunter, right? You must be if you've been allowed to leave Anchorhead."

He looked straight ahead and saw a woman with a satisfied look on her face.

"What are you talking about?"

"When you see Tanis, and I know you old boys always stick together, tell him his wife hopes that he enjoys the anniversary gift."

"You're giving you're husband his gift in the desert?"

"Oh yes. It's just a little something to remember me by. Something that symbolizes our years together. Something will blow up in his face. She scoffed. Of course, he'll never understand how appropriate it is; he can't talk his way out of this one."

"It sounds like you're planning to kill him."

"Oh, I'm through planning. I just left him a little mess to take care of. If he's smart he should be find, but he's not smart."

"And if he has a message for you?"

"I'll be long gone soon enough. The next shuttle to...anywhere, really. I've had it with cleaning up his messes and repairing his droids. If he lives, and that's a big if, he can try to get by on his own, but I doubt he'll last long with no one to listen to his lies."

"I'm...going to go now."

"I'm sure you will. Like I said, when you see him, tell him his wife, Marlena, says hello."

Marlena ran towards the gate like she stole something.

"What was that all about?" Carth asked him bewildered.

"I have no idea, but I feel bad for Tanis."

They ran through the desert while the blazing suns beating down on them until Mission stopped and used her hand to block the rays.

"What's that?"

Everybody else stopped too.

"It's very blurry."

"HK, do a scan on that object." Kaleb instructed.

_Conformation: Yes, Master. Scanning...it seems to be another meatbag. _

"That's what I thought and I'd bet every credit I own that, that's Tanis." He started to sprint towards him and HK-47 automatically followed.

"Wait up. Kaleb! Dammit!" Carth ran after him while Mission just shrugged and did the same.

"Why can't we, for just once, stay on task and find the Star Map?" Bastila said to herself as she hurried up yo catch up with them.

The End 

Wow, that was part one of this two part chapter. I would love it if you told me how I did on the swoop race. I thought it was sorta stale, but hey, there wasn't much more than that in the game. The second part should be out sooner, anyway, because it's already written. So until then as always hoped you've enjoyed and review.


	7. Dustbowl pt 2

1First things first. Thanks everybody for the reviews! I tried to reply to everybody that sent me one and I hoped they fully expressed my gratitude and/or answered some things that you were wondering about.

I tried to put in some more snappy comebacks for Bastila. It might just be me, but I don't think I had enough of them. And also I just had to put in some more descriptive writing from Kaleb and Bastila's POV. Whew! Did it just get hot in here or is it just me? (It's me? Well, it is kinda warm from the heater…)

So, I tried to get this one in early because a lot of people wanted me to update soon and I aims to please. The people who said that this chap. was sorta long (you know who you are) I'll try to shorten it down a bit because I know I went crazy with words. Sorry, but it was getting good and I just didn't want it to end.

Alright, I kinda lied a bit. Just a little bit though. Instead of being only two parts, there's probably going to be three. It's just that long.

Hey! Tomorrow's V-day, hope everybody gets who they want! You know what, just to celebrate that grand old lovey dovey holiday, expect a good fluffy at the end!

Chapter 7 

"Hey! Anyone out there...? I seem to be...ah...doomed." The man yelled at them.

The group jogged up to him with Bastila close behind.

"For a man surrounded by droids, you're pretty rude." Kaleb remarked.

"Thanks for coming over. I was starting to think that no one would help."

"Don't be so sure that I will." He stepped right before the circle droids. "You're Tanis, right?"

"Yeah, I'm Tanis. How did you know my name? I'm pretty sure that I've never met you before."

"You're wife told me a lot about you, but the one thing that really stuck, was that she said hello. Bye."

"Wait! I'm stuck here without food or water!"

Bastila walked up beside him. "This should be interesting."

Kaleb sniggered at her comment and faced him once again.

"What do you want?"

"My wife messed with my droids and programmed them to explode if I move from this spot."

"Darn, but that's karma for using droids to hunt, huh?"

"You know, now really isn't the time for a lecture."

"Oh, I'm sorry; do you have somewhere to go? Because far be it from me to waste your time. And if it's really urgent, I would love it if you gave me a warning before your droids blow you up and then incinerate you in a fiery grave."

Tanis sighed. "Maybe, I would be more receptive after I'm rescued."

"If you're rescued, you mean. I was just telling you that it's not sporting to hunt with droids, but then you raised your voice at me and there was no need."

"I've seen these so called hunters who do it for pure sport, but at the end of the day, they still sell their trophies. But enough about them, come on will you help?" He pleaded.

"I don't know. You don't seem to really care about what triggered this whole situation."

"Hey, I'm the victim here! I don't know the rules of divorce where you're from, but this is pretty over the top, don't you think!"

Carth sighed. "I guess we should help him out."

"Yes! Yes, I knew I liked this fella the minute I saw him.

"I say leave him." Bastila suggested coldly.

"You're pretty heartless for such a pretty lady, you know?"

Kaleb shook his head. "Ooh...nice knowing you, buddy."

"You know what? I'm sorry, I take that back. Let's go congratulate his wife."

Kaleb laughed. "Ok, it seems that you hit a little rough spot here so I'm going to help you out. But there's going to be conditions, of course; you have to give up your droids."

"Wait one second. I need those rigs. I'm no marksmen. No way can I agree to that, no way."

"Well, you're in no position to say no..., but if you feel argumentative, I'm still pretty sure that we could still catch up with Marlena."

Tanis hesitated and then groaned. "Alright, I'll do it. Gotta make sure that the hunt goes on, right? Now, could you help?"

"Good. What do we have to do?"

"Just access each droid repair interface. You'll have to do some tinkering, but be careful. One explosion I can survive, but anymore than that and I'm dead. Oh, and ignore the message Marlena left in there. No way do I deserve this, I swear. "

"Hmm...Sounds right up your alley, Mission. Would you mind?"

"Why not?" She answered him while going inside the circle of droids and encrypting one.

"Whoa! You're going to have a kid mess with droids whose blasts could kill me!"

Kaleb nodded. "Yep. Oh, and I suggest you don't call her a kid, especially when your life is in her hands, she doesn't like that too much."

A series of quick ranged beeps and all of the droids had stopped shaking.

"Simple."

Kaleb displayed his hand out to the desert. "You're good to go."

Tanis exhaled. "That was...unpleasant. Thanks."

"I didn't save you. Thank Mission."

He faced her. "Thanks, I would've been a goner."

She shrugged nonchalantly, "It wasn't a problem."

"Well, even if it wasn't, thanks again. Heh, the old bat thought I was dead." He scoffed. "You wanted me to give up my trade, right? Well, consider it done. Maybe I can rent them for security or something."

"As long as you don't use them to hunt, have at it."

"You got it. I doubt any of those uptight hunters would have helped and I know the wife isn't coming back. I'm heading back to the shop. I hope she left the manuals for these things."

He walked away muttering things about Marlena under his breath.

Kaleb tsked, shook his head at Bastila, and started to leave.

"Do you have something to say?" She asked, already irked by what he did.

"Bastila, even you know that if I had something to say, you would've heard it already."

"So then why did you shake your head at me?"

"I've just noticed that I'm rubbing off on you."

"Rubbing of on me? Force forbid."

"Chuckle, chuckle, laugh." He told her mockingly. "But it doesn't change the fact that any other jedi would've helped that man without question, but you refused him. It was hilarious, but not at all jedi-like."

"First of all, what would you know about being a Jedi? You've been breaking the code since the single day we've started this mission!"

"You're right, but I'm not pretending to be a jedi when I know that I'm nowhere near reaching the qualifications. Me being human for one..."

"Are you trying to imply that I'm pretending to be a Jedi?"

"I'm not trying to '_imply_' anything, but since you brought it up, you were clearly thinking about it. So that brings us to the question, do you like being a jedi?"

"Who wouldn't? It is an honorable station and I enjoy protecting people as well as the galaxy."

"Uh-huh...all I heard was jedi propaganda, but nothing on if you liked being one or not."

"I thought that would be evident, but yes, I do."

"So year after year of studious and strict training, with Vrook no less, and you didn't tire of it one bit?"

"Not at all."

"Well, to tell you the truth I'm just in it for the cool weapon and the force powers. But, come on, even you have to like having force powers and a double lightsaber."

"Yeah, Bastila. Mission interjected. Have you ever, you know, used the force for fun? A little jolt of the force to trip some jerk that's ticking you off?"

"I would never the force in such a childish way, Mission."

Kaleb scoffed offensively. "You…liar! She forced push me down a hill on Dantoinne!"

Carth started to chuckle. "When did you sneak off on Dantoinne?"

"I wanted to go out and see the planet at night, but then she begged me to take her along, so-"

"Begged you! You woke me up!"

"Begged, woke up, same difference. Anyway, the point is," He started to sniff. "I was...violated and this time...I didn't want it. She was...she was _the man_ and she tried to touch..._my danger zone_, but then she heard someone coming; so she...force pushed me down…_the hill_." He whimpered in exaggeration. "I'll never be the same again."

Carth was cracking up and Mission looked at Bastila in shock.

"What! Go Bastila!"

She was blushing furiously. "Mission and Carth you surely don't believe anything he's said? He was the one making perverted advances!"

"Well, unless you're getting sunburn all over your face, I think we know who to believe here." Carth told her with a big smirk.

"Wow, Bastila! I never knew you had it in you!"

Kaleb crossed his arms and smiled. "That just shows that you can learn something new about somebody everyday; and we learned a lot that night didn't we, Bastila?"

They all started laughing uproariously.

"Stop blushing so hard. We were just playing with you."

"Yeah," Carth told her while wiping his eyes. "We all know that you wouldn't do anything like that."

She glared at all of them. "Now that you've all had you're little joke, would it be too much to ask for all of you to focus!"

"It probably would be, but does anybody else see smoke coming from that sandcrawler?"

"Now that you mention it, it looks like they might have been attacked." Carth told him as he squinted towards the large machine.

"They might need our assistance. We should hurry over there and help them." Bastila said as the group started to run to them.

-----------------

"Who are you?" A man with a flustered expression asked Kaleb. "

"My name's K-"

"Ah, it doesn't matter. Can you handle a blaster? They my attack again at any second."

"I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that the Sand People did this?"

"You would be right. We're miners; we weren't trained to be skilled in combat. What! There are more of them coming down the hill! How do they do that!"

The whole group equipped themselves with their weapons and got ready for battle. Kaleb saw then charging down the hill and groaned.

"Alright, I got a plan. Carth, Mission, and HK; I want you to stay down here and help the miners while Bastila and I go up there and fight them head on. If you can, try to target the ones that we're not fighting so they'll be weakened and then we can take them down easier."

"Good idea. We've got your back." Carth told him with his blasters at the ready.

"Great. He turned to Bastila. There's one thing that we have a problem with though."

"What's that?"

"If I force jump all the way to them, they're going to be able to surround me because I'll be alone. I'm pretty sure that I could take them, but if more than four gang up on me, than any others could pass."

"Then I would fight them."

"I've thought of that too. Since you can't force jump, you'll probably still be a little ways off from here running at normal speed. If you get surrounded and they got past you, the only people that would be able to defend those miners would be Carth, Mission, and HK. They're good, but since they only use blasters, the full potential won't be reached unless the enemies are far away."

Bastila was nothing short of amazed. Even without knowing he was Revan, he was still a master at tactics and planned from every angle.

"So, what do you suggest we do?"

"Well, we have two options. You can either use the force to augment your speed or I can hold on to you while I force jump. I personally prefer the latter, but it's your choice."

"Not so much. Even if I do use the force for extra speed, the sand we still slow me down considerably and you'll still be alone."

"What? Beauty and brains? I'm in trouble."

"We're both going to be if we don't hurry up and jump. The Sand People are getting closer."

"You're right. Come on, I'll hold you in my arms."

"I don't need to be held in your arms."

"We're gonna be going through the air...fast. So, would you rather be in my arms or me pulling at yours?"

"Hmm..."

"I can't believe that you're actually considering being tugged through the air by one arm! Am I that repulsive!"

"Hmm..."

"Anytime you time you two are ready to jump is alright with me!" Carth exclaimed as he saw the Sand People were coming into view.

Kaleb scooped her up into his arms and jumped in one fluid motion. All Bastila could see were blurry colors spinning past. He landed about four feet in front of them.

"Last stop. Clothing, weapons, and angry Sand People." He looked at her. "Are you ok? You look like you're gonna be sick."

"I'm alright...I'm just dizzy. She took out her lightsaber and powered it. "How can you do that so often?"

He took out his two sabers and powered them also. "You get use to it, but look there's only six of them."

Two steady streams of blaster fire flew past them and blew one of the Sand People's head off.

"Um…Like I said five of them. I'll take the one with the mask!"

Kaleb jumped again, but this time one of his sabers collided with a Sand Person's head. Another one of the creatures came after him and he removed his first saber and slashed both of its arms. Bastila jabbed her saber all the way through one of them and then used force push to knock it back into another one of its friends. Both of them wailed in anguish and their heads dropped as she called her double saber back to her hand. Three more Sand People came out of nowhere, but one of them got blasted in the torso and its leg by blaster shots.

"Nice shots gang!"

The other two roared and smacked Kaleb against the back with their gaftis, forcing him to the ground. He grunted and tried to get up, but the creature ripped through the material of the robe and jabbed him.

/Do you need help/

/What was your first guess/ He telepathically shouted at her.

She put all three of the Sand People in a stasis and took them down easily. "There's no need to yell."

He got up slowly, wincing from the pain on his back, and threw his lightsaber at Bastila. She ducked from instinct.

"What in the Force do you think you were doing!"

A Sand Person howled in pain as he dropped to the ground.

"That was what I was doing. Kaleb retrieved his saber. It was sneaking up on you and would have hurt you if I didn't hurl my saber at him."

"And you couldn't have told me that before you almost impaled me!"

"Nope, because it would have been too late. I knew that you would duck."

He was right of course, their bond warned her, but it didn't change the fact that it was too irresponsible.

"And what if I didn't!"

"That's not your concern because you did." He turned around and took of his torn robe. "Now could you tell me what my back looks? It burns like hell."

"Your back has red welts all over it and some of them are bleeding."

"Well, then, it's not as bad as I thought it was. Could you help?"

"With what?" She asked languidly, still mad that he put her in a near death experience.

"To get me a new robe-what do you think! I need to be healed!"

"First you get surly and then no please? Well, that won't do at all; heal yourself." She told him with an indifferent attitude and crossed her arms.

"I can't heal myself because my force is exhausted from jumping too many times. So please, could you please heal me please?"

"I don't know. I didn't really feel the appreciation in that. It sounded more like sarcasm than an actual need."

He sighed heavily and got on his knees to beg. "Bastila, I'm sorry for putting your life in danger. It was stupid of me to not think of your needs first and to act so rashly and without concern. I don't deserve to be healed by you, but since I know that you're so merciful, maybe you could take time out of your day to pity me…please."

"I'll think about it."

"What! That was an award wining performance right there and you're only going to think about it!"

"I'll heal you just so you can stop acting like such a big baby. You're present personality is irritating enough."

Even though she put her hands on the bruises gently he still winced involuntarily. She rubbed her hands against his back relaxingly as his skin slowly returned to normal. He sighed in relief as her healing aura washed over him. Even if she was just healing him, it turned out to be sort of like a massage more than anything else and she actually enjoyed the texture of his skin. She had suspected it to be rough, but it was actually quite soft; well as soft as a man's skin should be anyway. When the marks had completely gone away, she hastily removed her hands; thinking that she was enjoying this too much.

"You should be okay now."

"Wow, nice back rub, Bastila. We should definitely do this more often."

"We should return to Carth and Mission. I'm sure that they're worried about us."

Kaleb got up and put his robe back on. "I gave you compliment and you just ignored me, very rude."

"I didn't ignore you, you just weren't acknowledged. I know that I didn't give you a back rub so I refused to argue about it with you."

He faced her with an irksome grin on his face. "Okay."

She gave him an incensed stare. "Do you even know how much I dislike you!"

"I could give an estimation."

"Why do you this! Why must you drive me insane!"

"Insane's a little harsh. I would like to think that I provide you with a release from all the pain you're feeling."

Bastila knew what he was talking about automatically.

"I don't need your empathy." She told him harshly as she started to walk away.

"I'm not being empathetic because the last time I checked, sympathy was only given to people who told you about their situation."

She turned around sharply. "Did you ever stop and think that maybe I don't want to tell you about my life!"

Kaleb started to walk away himself. "Did you ever think that you can't always walk away from your problems?"

"That is not an answer to my question!"

"If you can't answer mine, why should even think on yours?" He asked her in an even voice as he kept walking.

"Would you at least have the decency to look at me when I am talking to you!"

He faced her and sat down on the sand.

"This good enough for you?"

Bastila disregarded his offensive gesture.

"Why would you think that I'm avoiding my problems?"

"Bastila, you're dad just died and you're just dismissing like nothing even happened."

She felt her throat tighten and tears forcing their way to her eyes at the mention of her father.

"Y-You have no right to evaluate my actions! Nobody has asked for your opinion!"

"Don't get mad at me because your foolish jedi code can't let you grieve for your dad properly."

She closed her eyes to push the tears back down. The thing that agitated her the most was the fact that he was so calm and he didn't yell at her once. It infuriated her that he was so understanding and compassionate, but also blunt and harsh enough to get his point across.

"Why are you so adamant about me about me revoking the Jedi code! Can you not understand that I accept my decisions!"

"Accepting and liking are two very different things, Bastila."

"Why do you even care!"

"Great question. So good, that I'll actually answer it. I care because I know you're dying inside right now; I don't need a bond to see that." His eyes bored into hers with that fierce determination that he got when he wanted to prove something. "You can't keep suppressing your feelings every time life rears its ugly head and expect the problem to be absent."

He stared at her, while she stood in silence, trying to detect any hint of an expression off her face, but as usual it was devoid of all emotion.

Mission ran up to them with a huge smile on her face while Carth and HK-47 followed a little ways behind.

"Hey guys! That fight was exhausting, huh? Those Sand People kept coming like gizka; you killed one off another popped in its place!"

The pilot glanced from Kaleb's face to Bastila.

"What's wrong with the two of you? You're depressing the crap out of me."

Kaleb laughed. "Well, we can't have that. This mission is depressing enough."

"Are all the miners unharmed?" Bastila asked Carth in a neutral tone.

If she was mad or depressed, Kaleb couldn't tell, and her cutting their bond off wasn't helping matters.

"Uh...yeah. The captain told me to give his thanks and to use the Sand People's robes to get in their enclave undetected."

"I don't think that it's the smartest thing in the world to try to infiltrate the Sand People enclave wearing the robes of their people we've just killed. I mean that's just common sense." Kaleb said to them as they then walked over the Sand People they defeated.

"I agree, but that miner captain told us that we had to get their clothes or we'd be shot down on sight."

"Most of these are already ruined." He said to them as he spotted some clothes were ruined with blood. "We can't walk into their base with their blood on our clothes."

"I've found a clean one, but I'm not so sure that I want to wear it after it was on that dead body." Mission complained with a disgusted look on her face.

"You also might want to watch out for the ones with guts hanging out, too."

"Ewww!" She exclaimed as she shuddered.

"Sorry, but I was just trying to give you a warning before you stepped into something gushy." He took the mask off of one and got his clothes from another. "Their faces are what make me sick. I can definitely see why they hide them now."

The gruesome face of the Sand Person was made even more hideous by the look of pure anguish on its face.

"Alright, so Bastila and Mission, you can change over there somewhere and Carth and I will go over by that sand dune. HK, I want you to protect the girls to the best of your capabilities."

_Conformation: Of course, Master. I will make sure that the female organics stay intact._

"Well, that's always a good thing. You two should be alright if anyone sneaks up on you."

"Yes, if there's one thing that droid is good for its killing."

"Come on, Carth."

He nodded as Kaleb led the way to a medium sized sand hill.

-------------------

"Hey, can I ask you something?" Kaleb asked as he took off his open robe and started to remove his boots.

"You can ask whatever you want, but if I'm going to answer it or not is the real question." Carth asked him as he unbuckled the straps on his light purple armor.

"I know all about the whole not trusting anybody with anything thing you have going on. I mean you pretty much interrogated me all throughout Taris, but what is it that made you get this way?"

"I thought that I told you I didn't want to talk about it anymore."

"Yeah, I know, but I'm bored so spit it out."

He chuckled. "Cute, but not cute enough to distract me into answering you. I don't understand why you're so interested in the first place."

"Well, it could be that I actually consider you as a good friend, but…no that's too unlikely."

Carth sighed. "I'll tell you, but then you have to answer a question that's been bothering me for a while."

"Fair is fair."

He sighed again. "When I think of all the men who have betrayed us, the one that stands out above them all is the one I respected most…Saul."

"Saul? Never heard of him?"

"Really? I thought that everybody knew of him. Admiral Saul Karath is the commander of the entire Sith fleet. He's half the reason Malak has done so well in the war."

"I got a feeling that he wasn't such a great friend of yours."

"He…he used to be commanding officer back when the Mandalorian Wars began. He taught me everything I know about being a soldier and…I looked up to him."

He put his chest plate on the ground while Kaleb removed both of his boots.

"Saul approached me before he left. He talked to me about how the Republic was on the losing side and how I should start thinking about my survival." He laughed acrimoniously. "I remember it as clear as if it was happening right now. I now know that he was trying to recruit me into the Sith, but I…I couldn't conceive of it back then. "

"So what did you do?" Kaleb asked as he started to undo his sash.

"Of course I, with my stubbornness, argued with him. Saul then got angry and left."

"So did you do something then?"

"No...I was so confused by his instant anger-the whole conversation, really."

"You didn't think that he could betray the Republic?"

"I couldn't fathom it...he, Saul, was my mentor. He had proved himself dozens of times over by leading us to so many victories against the Mandalorians; even when things looked their worst. He couldn't have been serious." He closed his eyes and started to rub his forehead. "I was wrong, obviously, because he not only left us for the Sith, but...he gave them codes to bypass our scanners."

"You were left defenseless."

Carth exhaled sharply. "I remember waking up as the first of the Sith bombers snuck past us and began destroying half our docked ships. I...I knew right away what happened."

"So what, you told everybody that it was Karath right?"

"I...didn't, I…couldn't. But I could have stopped him...I could have stopped it all."

"Carth, blaming yourself isn't the answer. You know that."

"Shouldn't I take the blame? I didn't do my duty. I failed the entire crew."

"Do you really think that's true? That this is your entire fault?"

"I don't know. Maybe." The older man looked off to the side. "He might have killed me if I tried, or I might have killed him. I was stupid, however, and I let him go."

A wave of silence washed over the men as Carth started to wring his hands and his eyes were filled with an enraged fury.

"I've fought Saul for years now and if I ever catch up to him, he will regret what he's done. He will regret it."

"That can't be all that he's done. Even if what Karath did was bad, it's too impersonal for the hate you feel for him."

"Well, there's more..., but I don't want to or will talk about it right now."

Kaleb tugged the Sand People robe over his head. "Hey, it's your life."

"So?"

"So…what?"

"It's time for you to complete your end of the deal."

"Is it that time already?"

"Sure is."

"What would you like to know?"

"Well, you could fill me out on your opinion about this mission. You just automatically got saddled with this big assignment by the Jedi to save the galaxy, how do you feel about it?"

He scoffed. "Somebody actually cares about what I think? If I said anything to Bastila she'd just give me a lecture or, you know, the usual insulting of my intelligence." He put his hand on his chin. "Where to begin? I hate the fact that I couldn't say no to this mission, but that council said I had no choice in the matter. I mean what, was there no one else in this galaxy to save it, but me?"

Carth laughed and put on the long boots the Sand People wore. "Hey, it's not the best job in the world, but it pays the bills."

He laughed too. "I guess I can't complain too much. At least I know that the job is in capable hands. It's better to be on the mission than at home wondering when I'm going to be safe again."

"What? Are you actually being selfless?" The older man asked him jokingly.

"Nowhere near. I just know that chicks really dig guys that save the day."

He put his mask on and Carth shook his head and did the same.

--------------------

"I'm finished." Bastila told Mission in a slightly muted voice due to the mask.

The young Twi'lek grunted in impatience.

"My robe's...not...cooperating with me." She tried to tie her buckles. "I can't...get all these...stupid buckles together!" She whined.

The Jedi sighed. "Move your hands. I'll help you out."

Mission did as she was told and Bastila waved her finger. One by one, all her buckles connected by themselves.

"Thanks, that was-"

_Warning: Two unknown life forms are approaching. HK lifted its gun. Unnecessary Threat: Acknowledge yourselves or you will be shot. _

"Hold up there, trigger! It's us!"

The two men walked up to them fully clothed in the Sand People attire.

"Evr'ybdy rdy t' go?" Kaleb asked suddenly realizing that his question was muffled horribly.

"Kaleb, you have to position your mouth on the mouthpiece to make your voice clearer." Bastila told him, her tone still dispassionate.

He adjusted his mask. "Testing, one, two, three, A, b, c, 7, 4, 9. Can you hear me now?" He tapped on his mouthpiece. "I can see why those Sands only roar because talking in this thing is a real effort."

_Proud Statement: I have done as you asked, Master. Do you have any other commands, hopefully involving bloodshed? _

"No more commands for now, but good job on protecting the girls."

_Gratitude: Thank you, Master. Even though I am saddened by the fact that my efficient assassination skills won't be put to good use, I am content, for the moment, to have my achievements noticed. _

"Now that we're all dressed, we should head over to that enclave, huh?"

Kaleb could tell that Mission was trying not to be curt, but was eager to free her brother nonetheless.

"You're right. By the time we get there, Griff will probably find a way to get out himself; but we still need to get our gaftis."

The group collected four gaftis and walked through the small sandy walkway.

-----------------

"So, pretty much, all we have to do is avoid the Sands and then act like them at the same time, easy right?"

"Easy in your imagination." Bastila disputed against Kaleb idea. "Did you forget that we have a droid with us?"

"Actually, my dear Bastila, I have a plan."

"Two in one day? That's a shock. If somebody would please mark this day down?"

He continued without hesitation.

"We're going to act like we salvaged HK and walk right through."

_Indignant Statement: Master, not to argue with your apparently doomed scenario, but I hardly looked salvaged. _

"True, but that'll just reflect well on us, won't it? We're so good that we can get an undamaged droid."

"I agree with Kaleb. I'm pretty sure that they won't care about our situation in the first place." Carth said to the group.

"Great, but before we do that we should put our clothes in a safe place. How about here?" He found a small sand bank and dug a little out of it and put all of their regular clothes in it. That should do it."

"Well, that's just wonderful; now all our clothes will have sand in them. Do you even think before you act?"

"For your information, Bastila, no I don't. So ha!"

She gave Carth a truly baffled expression, but he just shrugged.

"At least that problem's settled. We should go before we attract too much attention."

The four went to the far corner of the enclave, right before the Cerka marking points, and avoided all the Sand People till they reached the entrance.

"That miner captain was right about those turrets. Those things would have killed us before we even got close." Mission speculated as she looked at the base's defenses.

"Luckily we got here in one piece, so let's go rescue that brother of yours."

She smiled in agreement and opened the door.

----------------

As soon as they walked in, a local guard spotted them and greeted them with a ferocious outcry.

_Interjection: One moment...I believe I actually understood that, Master. It may not have been his intention, but he did actually communicate something. _

"Tell him that we're not here to harm anyone, but we have to speak to the leader of his people."

HK roared back in a mechanical voice. _Translation: He is expressing disbelief...as am I...but his duty requires that he report to his chieftain anyway. Extrapolation: It would seem that we are at least worthy of curiosity, for the moment. I would much rather this get bloody, Master, but it's your call. _

"It would be easier to kill him, but then the relationship between the people in Anchorhead and the Sands would get worse. More Sands would come; eventually see the destruction, and then attack. Since we can't let that happen, keep translating what he said."

_Result: It is showing anger that you are giving demands when you have on the robes of his fellow people. He knows that you killed them and wants to return their attire back to the ground where it came from. He has ordered all of you to undress immediately. _

"I can understand that. Tell him that we'll follow his customs."

_Query: Are you sure you don't want me to eliminate it, Master? You do not have to comply with its commands. _

"I know, but he's right. We did kill his people, so if he wants to give them a proper burial, so be it. We'll do what he wants us to."

All of them undressed and gave their clothes to the guard. He gently placed them on a wicker bin and roared again.

_Translation: It has told us to wait here for the time being and not to defile anything with your hands. _

"Well, darn. I guess using their bathroom is out of the question."

Kaleb walked around to see if he could find anything to sit on, and with no success, sat on the ground with his back slumped up against the wall. He yawned, closed his eyes, and hung his head for a quick nap. Bastila glanced over at Mission, who apparently figured out that she couldn't see her brother until they talked to the chieftain, copied Kaleb on the opposite side of the wall. Carth just strolled around the entryway checking out his surroundings. She sighed and went over to where Kaleb was, making sure that his eyes were closed, and sat a little way besides him.

"Um...Kaleb?"

"Mmm-hmm?"

"I just...wanted to apologize for taking my anger-"

"And stress." He added with slight amusement in his voice.

"Yes, that too," She added. "But I didn't mean to take it out on you. You were just...worried about my well being."

He raised his head and looked at her with a fake sadness, wiped his eyes, and sniffed.

"I don't know if I can accept your apology this time, Bastila. You really hurt my feelings with that one."

"Really, Kaleb, I doubt that would break your manly demeanor."

He raised an eyebrow. "Oh, so you've noticed it too?"

"It's very hard to miss."

"Then that means I'm doing my job." He smiled. "First I have to meet your oh so charming mother and then we have our first really big fight."

"It wasn't that big."

"Bastila, you pretty much ignored me and if you just had to communicate with me, it was something that made me look dumb."

"Well, yes, but what was I supposed to do? Buy you chocolates?"

"No...I'd like some pazzak cards much better." He chuckled. "But come on, we have to be the most promising couple anybody's ever seen."

"And what makes you think that we're a couple?"

"Because I'm irresistible in every way. I don't mean to be cocky, but it's hard not to when you're the best. Oh, and you're ok too."

"I'm only ok?" She asked in a piqued voice.

"Hey, since when have "jedi" cared about the way they look?" He questioned light heartedly.

"Just because I am a Jedi, doesn't mean that I don't give attention to my appearance. I'm just humble about it, is all."

"Then you don't need me to give you a description of yourself, because if I did, I wouldn't be being modest would I?" He said giving her a lascivious stare.

"I don't know if I should be flattered or simply sickened by your comment."

He head drooped and closed his eyes once again.

"I answered your question, didn't I?"

"But you did it in the must vulgar way possible."

She looked over at him to see if he was still awake. He was snoring lightly, but she was abruptly reminded of their half-nakedness.

_I didn't even notice? Was it that comfortable to talk to him? _

She couldn't help, but be tempted to look at him again. His shortly trimmed light brown was the color of a finely ground spice. As was the slim strip goatee on his angled chin. He had a striking face that had no scars, which was surprising considering how many battles he'd been in. His eyelids were closed, but she had fell in love with his hazel-blue eyes and their hypnotizing gaze. Even the dimples that appeared on his cheeks when he smiled were absolutely adorable. She had also been surprised that there was some, what she guessed, strange alien symbols on his chiseled arm. They were attractive and gave him a mysterious air, but she was interested to where he had gotten them and what they meant. His astoundingly built chest was moving passively with his calm breaths. The sun gave his muscled abs a golden hue that was not seen in the artificial light on the ship or the almost non-existed light in Kashyyyk. Kaleb's chest was also clean shaven, without a speck of hair sticking out besides a thin line a stubble. It started at his innie belly button and that moved seductively down the rest of his stomach until it vanished below his form-fitting shorts. They were very...tight for someone who ran around most of the day, but even she had to admit that they left a lot to the imagination.

_Uh...his legs..._ She thought quickly, happy that Kaleb's eyes were closed because she was sure that her face was beet red.

His legs were of no exception, as the thigh to the calves were perfect sculpted without them looking like he took strength stims.

The guard came back and roared again, waking Kaleb up in the process. He got up and stretched.

"HK...what did he say?"

_Translation: It says that its chieftain has allowed you to see him, Master. _

"Alright! Let's see if we can find a solution to all this. I want everybody to be on their very best behavior."

Mission rose up too. "I just want to get Griff out of this place."

"Well, I would personally love to get my clothes back."

"Just think of it as well fitted bathing suit, Bastila." Kaleb suggested.

"That's easy enough for you to say. For you, it's just like having on a pair of shorts."

"Yeah, but I'm stuck in permanent wedgie mode."

The guard growled and roared again.

_Query: Do you want me to translate him for you, Master? _

"No, I'm pretty sure that it was close to hurry up or something to that effect."

The male guard led them into the chieftain's chambers.

----------------------

"So to stop these attacks, we just have to get these moisture vaporators for them?" He told Bastila as they walked away from the Sand People camp. "Easy enough. That Rodian at the Cerka should supply us with some."

"Do you think we should have left the others there by themselves?" She asked him with anxiety creasing her forehead.

"We really didn't have a choice, the chief said that they had to hold them for our good faith, but Carth and HK are there so if Mission needs protection they'll be the ones to do it."

"I suppose so...we should retrieve our clothes, however. I doubt anyone would want our business like this."

"Oh, I beg to differ. I'm sure the ladies would be fighting over a chance to see me."

She rolled her eyes as she walked to the little sand dune that he buried their clothes in. Kaleb strayed back, knowing that she was staring at him back at the enclave, but who was he to deny her the experience?

"Now it's time for me to have a little lookie poo for myself." He murmured under his breath as he examined her when she was busy looking for the clothes.

Her chestnut hair glistened in their two ponytails held by metal clamps. The highlights that shone in the desert contrasted perfectly with her smooth milky white skin. And those eyes that betrayed whatever she felt whenever she talked to him, but could still be so empty of any feeling when she didn't want to be analyzed. Either way they were so emotional. Their gray color turning black at the top of her pupil, but icy blue at the bottom when she was mad at him. But when she smiled, even though rare, a extraordinary bluish-gray graced her eyes. The soft curve of her nose which led down to her full rose lips that were just longing to be met by his. Bastila's slender neck flowed seamlessly to her slender shoulders, that went into her jedi trained toned arms that still had their feminine essence about them. Kaleb was shocked, a good shock of course, that her small frame held such well endowed breast.

_Can't complain about that._ He thought with a devious smirk.

Her stomach was firm and flat and he also noted her athletic thighs, but his eyes really lingered, longer then they should have, on her more...engaging parts. He quickly found out that the two suns weren't the only things getting him heated.

"Kaleb, why are you just standing there? Come get your clothes." Bastila said to him wondering why he had such a strained look on his face.

"Oh, yeah...I'm coming-uh I mean I'll get there...eventually...uh now." He told her flustered, taking his robe from her, turning around, and walking a ways off to get dressed.

--------------

The two went to the back of the room to the receptionist desk and Kaleb was personally happy that the Cerka rep was busy talking to someone else.

"I don't have any parts for you swoop jockeys and your insane actions." The Rodian told him as he came closer.

"You've got me all wrong. I'm already the champ, but I do need some moisture vaporators."

"Moisture vaporators? Why would you need something like that? Unless you're quitting racing and becoming a farmer."

"It doesn't really matter as long as you're getting paid, right?" Kaleb told him, not really wanting to share his business with someone who worked with Cerka.

"I guess you're right, but I wouldn't have cared either way. I just wanted to know the reason behind it. Anyway, there's two parts to the vaporator, but it comes in a non-separable pack for 400 credits."

"No problem. We still have a lot of those bonds from the win."

He paid the alien and gave the item to Bastila.

"Why are you giving this to me?"

"You're more responsible than I am right?"

"That's evident, but even you should be able to handle this."

"If I can handle it, then this should be nothing. Don't worry I trust you."

"Was that some kind of secret code to say that you've actually started to trust me?"

"Is that what you interpreted? He scoffed. You're thinking too much in to it."

She was slightly hurt by what he said, but her pride wouldn't let her show him this, so she got defensive instead.

"Is that so? Well, since I'm not comprehending your statement right, why don't you clarify it for me?"

"I just meant that you're way more dependable then I'll ever be."

"I consider you as a dependable person, not one to stick strictly to business-mind you, but you are a person who keeps their promises. Either way, being reliable is very contrast to being trustworthy."

"That's true, but to really have faith in someone they have to offer a since of vulnerability. In a sense, exposing your belly; a subject that you or I really don't really excel at. It's like both of us are taking one step forward and two steps back."

"And just where are you trying to go?"

"I'm trying to get out of this box that I'm trapped in."

"Box?"

"Yeah, it's this box around me that decides everything that I do." He stopped walking and gazed at her intently. "Did you ever think that we have no choice in this world? No free will of our own, everything's being choreographed?"

Bastila didn't know if he was talking about the mission or life in general, but both ideas scared her. He always was the sort of person to think outside the lines and leave others in the dark without wanting to do so. His thoughts, his musings, were always without peer and that was one thing that was most respected about him...and feared.

"I believe that we have the ultimate free will. We can ultimately choose what we want to do with our lives, as others are controlled even ruled by the Force. We can embrace it and work with it."

"Or even control it to do our every command?"

"Well, yes, but that leads to a darker path."

Both of them resumed walking once again as a silence surrounded them.

"So do you think that we are afraid of our own will?" Kaleb asked, breaking the pause. "That if we know too much-have too much power, everything that we have supported will unravel into nothingness?"

"We have restrictions so that we don't these things for granted. Too much of anything is always bad."

He smiled. "I disagree. You can never have too many good friends, or too much fun, or too much love."

"Even though those are all nice things, they can still be too much in overindulgence. You might be close to your friends, but which ones do you like more than the others? One might be your best friend while another is just of regular status."

"But if there good friends, wouldn't they just be content with being social with you, no matter what their ranking?"

"Not everybody thinks like you do."

"That's true enough, but there's no way you can have too much fun. This mission we're on is a perfect example."

She gave him an accusatory look. "Another "perfect example" of having too much fun, is you."

"I know how to keep myself interested, if that's what you mean."

"I meant that having too much fun is only a way to avoid reality. In other words, it's being naive."

"Are you trying to say that I avoiding the inevitable?"

Bastila gave him a puzzled look, but couldn't help to let loose a sly grin. "Is that what you interpreted?" She scoffed. "You're thinking too much into things."

Kaleb laughed from her joke. "Cute and very good timing. I'll give you a ten."

"I thought it would be to your pleasing."

"Alright, you won that round, but there's no way that you can beat true love."

"Love is probably the easiest one of your examples. Not only is it uncontrollable, but it's unexplainable as well."

"Yeah, but that adds to the mystic of it all."

"Mystic? If you mean confusion and heartache then I guess you're right."

"But that's why everybody wants it. My mom use to say that "The person who gets what they want easily never has time to appreciate it, like a person who works hard does." It's worth the wait, so stop hating love so much."

"Love brings as much pain as it does happiness. It's not worth waiting for an endless need to be with someone."

"Ah, but Bastila, that's the best part." He said with a dreamy smile that made her knees weak. "I won't try to say that love has only ups and no downs, but nothing or anyone can break one that's true. If one became addicted to another person...it's the purest emotion, a true and thoughtless expression. Have you ever noticed that there's only one word for it? No other phrase can express it as well. You can't say "I like you very much" or "I'm infatuated with you." because the first one doesn't have enough impact and the second one only demonstrates lust."

"You know it so well. Have you ever..."

"Been in love?" He grinned while finishing her question. "I've had some flings here and there, but nothing serious. And since you're so nosy, I'll tell you that I get my romanticism from my mother."

They turned a corner and a wall shadow gave both of them a short relief from the suffocating environment.

"I wasn't being nosy, I was just-"

"Nosy?"

She glared at him. "No, I was just curious as to how you knew so much about love."

"I bet you were."

"And what do you mean by that?"

"Nothing at all. But I do want to know if you've had any crushes?"

"Who's being nosy now?"

"You should know by now that I'm a hypocrite. I'm not ashamed about being inquisitive like you are." He revealed a nervy smirk. "You had one for that Revan guy didn't you?"

She was taken aback and paled slightly. _Why would he think that? _

"Figuring it out was easy enough." He told her, as if he was a mind reader. "When I asked about him, you hesitated way too much for somebody you wouldn't care for."

There was no way that she could tell Kaleb about Revan, but if she didn't it would look suspicious and he would know that she was telling a lie. If there was one thing that he was good at, it was being persistent when he wanted to find out about something.

"It's a long and boring story. I'm sure you don't want to hear it."

Kaleb flashed his permit to the city gate guard. "Nonsense, I love story time. In fact, you can tell me the about the first time you two met."

She sighed, not surprised that he wasn't dissuaded easily. "I guess I should start at where it all began."

"That would be nice."

The gate guard nodded and opened the door and wished them "good hunting!" as they left. The two felt the hot blast of air erupt on their bodies as the huge doors opened.

"When I joined the Order, I wasn't the most popular person there."

He gasped. "There's just no way! It can't be true!"

She rolled her eyes and continued. "I did a lot of posturing because nobody accepted me. I was very...arrogant and thought if they didn't accept me, I would have to be above them."

"So, it's clear that you didn't grow out of that one."

"Are you going to interrupt me every time you disagree with something, because if you are I'll stop right now!" She exclaimed, annoyed with his constant interjections.

His eyes were downcast to the sand and he had a mock guilt. "I'll be good."

"Thank you. When I was six, and had a break from training, I ventured out and found a beautiful secluded spot. It had the most spectacular view of the endless dusk sky and old willow tree that sprouted amazing flowers when it was warm. It…was the only place where I ever felt happy in my early days of being an apprentice."

"I'm sorry, but you had a secret spot too? Guess we both liked to get away when we were younger."

She nodded. "I went there to read or meditate on many occasions, so I was just going there to do so again; and that's when I saw Revan sitting under the tree, sleeping. I didn't know at the time who he was or the fact that he was a Padawan, but the thing that irritated me the most was how peaceful he looked when it was my special place to begin with. As I told you before, I was arrogant, so I ran over there and woke him up myself."

"And what did he do?"

"Revan opened his eyes slightly to see who was there, but as soon as he saw it was me, he closed them again."

Kaleb couldn't help, but laugh. "Pretty much, he ignored you?"

"Well...yes."

"And, of course, you got mad, right?"

"I...did, but he treated me as if I wasn't important in the slightest!"

"Well, you woke the man up from his sleep, Bastila. I'd probably would have just closed my eyes too."

"Anyway," She told him, agitated by his teasing. "I yelled at him about being in my favorite spot and demanded that he leave."

"What he'd do then?"

"He stretched and asked me, without opening his eyes, why this was my favorite place. I told him it was none of his business and that he should just go. He complied, got up, and brushed himself off. By then I knew who he was and I apologized and bowed while he laughed at my actions."

"Me and this Revan guy would've gotten along just fine." He exclaimed jokingly.

"Do you want to hear the rest or not!"

"Sorry. I'll stop."

"He told me to stop bowing to him because he wasn't a master and then asked me again why this was my favorite place. I told him that it made me less homesick and it was away from the others that didn't like me. He laughed at me again and told me that of course nobody would like me if I had such a bad attitude."

She looked over at him, expecting a rude retort, but just saw him looking at her expectantly.

"So…what happened then?"

"He said...that he would be my first friend in exchange for me being able to use my spot. I told him that it wasn't necessary, but he just smiled, pat me on the head, and said that he would talk to me later, he had to get back to his studies."

"How old was he then?"

"He was eight at the time."

"He must've been a real nice guy, because when I was eight, I was still in that girls are icky, throw mud at their faces phase of my life."

"Revan was always…different from all the others."

"He was your first?" He saw the look of utter horror on her face and scoffed. "Was he your first love?"

"No. He was a very dear friend to me, but that was all." Bastila massaged her forehead. "I believe that I have sedated all of your curiosity for the moment, so I suggest that we move onto more important matters."

Kaleb knew that she had stronger feelings for him, but decided not to press the issue. It was obvious that Revan created a lot of painful memories for her, that she hadn't gotten over, and he wouldn't be the one to force her to open up about them.

--------------------

They came back to the Sand People enclave to see another guard and HK waiting for him.

_Statement: It is a pleasure to see you intact, Master. I was told by Carth to await your arrival and translate. _

"Good thinking on his part. HK, tell him that we have his vaporators."

HK-47 did as he was told and the guard growled back at them in a surprised manner.

_Translation: It is showing pure disbelief that you have actually completed this task. But he will bring you to his chieftain as promised_.

All of them went into the chieftain's room for a second time, and Mission and Carth smiled as they saw them. The guard communicated the results to his leader and he seemed as shocked as the guard.

"Well, at least he seems less inclined to bash my head in." Kaleb said jokingly.

_Translation: He says that he still does not trust you, Master, but you have honored your word. He will stop his people's attacks on the Anchorhead town since he is moving his tribe farther away. Acknowledgment: He has also awarded you with his gafti, Master. Apparently it is a high honor for them. _

"Tell him I said thanks and that I need to ask about a prisoner named Griff."

HK complied. _Translation: He knows of this Griff and says that he is a useless slave that doesn't benefit them any. _

"Yeah, that sounds like Griff." Mission commented with a grin.

_Translation: He also says that you can take him, Master. _

"Great! Let's go get him, Mission."

She nodded with much enthusiasm and almost sped out the door.

"Kaleb, don't forget about Iziz and the Star Map information we need." Bastila reminded him.

"Oh right, sorry. HK, could you ask if we can set the Jawas free also?"

_Answer: I will do so, Master, but it would be wise to ask too many favors in the future. _

HK and the chief dialoged once again.

_Translation: He says they have also outgrown their usefulness, so we may take them also. _

"Tell him thanks again."

_Translation: We are free to leave. _

"Now that we have his permission," Kaleb said sarcastically. "Let's go."

The group scanned the circular enclave and finally found their holding rooms. Mission opened the door and a similar blue Twi'lek, but male, stared back at them with widened eyes.

"Uh...you there. I'm a high ranking executive of the Cerka Corporation! Eh...there's a big reward if you take me back to Anchorhead."

"Griff, you don't recognize me? It's Mission!"

"Mission? Is it really you? I thought you were dead! Joy of joys, my little sister is alive!"

"I...I have to ask you something, Griff. It's really important. I ran into Lena. She said...she said it was your idea to leave me on Taris. That's not true, is it?"

"Ah, well...there's the truth and then there's truth, you know? I always meant to go back to Taris, sis. Just as soon as I had the credits to pay off my debts. But credits have been hard to come by."

"You mean it's true? It was your idea to leave me there? I'm your sister-how could you abandon me like that?"

"Come on, sis. You didn't need me to look after you anymore. You may have been young, but you knew how to take care of yourself. Besides, you're here now-everything worked out fine."

"That's it! Her voice rising. That's all you have to say to me after all those years-after deserting me on Taris!"

"Well, that and uh...could you please get me out of here? You got a tough looking friend over there."

"Scum like you can run to Anchorhead." Kaleb commanded viciously.

"Yeah, you can find your way from here, right? Can you manage that? Mission asked mercilessly while Griff opened his mouth once again. What? Is there something else?"

"Uh...well, I...I wanted to thank you and, uh, you look like you're doing well...finically I mean. Say...um...could you spare me a few credits to get me back on my feet?"

"You're hitting me up for credits! She asked in disbelief. I don't believe this! Lena was right about you, Griff! We should have just left you to the Sand People! Just don't talk to me anymore-ever!"

"Huh...that didn't go well. Sis always was too fiery for her own good. She'll cool down in time."

"Yeah, you keep telling yourself that every time your head hits the pillow. I bet it'll make you feel all warm in fuzzy inside." Carth told him darkly.

"Ah, she'll be ok. We've had our fights before, but it's too bad though, I could have really used a helping hand. You may have saved my life, but I don't have a credit to my name."

"What is your problem! First you have the audacity to ask your baby sister for some credits when you haven't seen her in who knows how long and then you're going to ask me!" Kaleb told him harshly.

"I...uh...guess you've been talking to Lena too. That's ok-I'll figure out a way to get by without credits. I always do. Besides I already have a job lined up for me. Greeta, the manger over at the Cerka supply shop, said I could work for him if I ever get tired of the mines. I think I'll take the offer. The Twi'lek put his hand chin. You know maybe there is something you can do for me. "

"Are you slow in the head! Kaleb bellowed. You are not my friend-nor do I like you! The only reason that you're still conscious is because your Mission's brother and I have enough respect for her to not hurt you when she would in a second."

_Excited Query: Master, allow me the honor of hearing this meatbag's screams as it dies. _

"That's not such a bad idea, HK. Mission remarked with a vengeful stare. Maybe a couple of bolts from your blaster will set him straight."

"Mission, you are being blinded by your anger. Bastila cautioned. Do not let it influence your actions."

Griff scratched his head. "Well, just in case you're interested, I'll be back at the shop. I need to talk to a guy first and set up the details anyway.

"I'm sorry, but I just can't listen to this bastard any longer. I'm going to go free the Jawas before this…thing, drives me crazy." Kaleb told them definitely as he headed to the room across from them.

"I don't know what's eating him." He started to leave, but stopped before he passed his sister. "Uh…goodbye, Mission. I'm…glad you're not dead."

"Hmph!"

He shrugged and continued his departure out of the enclave.

"It certainly wasn't the most thoughtful way to express himself, but I did sense that he really was remorseful in his words." Bastila told the young Twi'lek, trying to ease the rejection she was feeling.

"I don't care! We go all across the planet and risk life and limb trying to find him, and the only thing that he can say is about money! He didn't even thank us!"

"I'm sorry that your brother acted like a jerk, Mission." Carth told her solemnly. "You didn't deserve that."

"Don't be sorry! He's the only one who should feel that way, but I don't even want to think about him right now. Let's just meet Kaleb and get out of here."

The group turned around and saw that he was speaking to a group of three of the tiny Jawas.

"Are you the one to free us from servitude?" A Jawa in the middle asked him timidly.

"That would be me." Kaleb answered tiredly. "Iziz sent me to free you, so go on."

"Thanks to you very much! Jawas are indebted to you for generosity you have shown."

The three small aliens scampered off towards the entrance in a frightened rush and the group departed as well.

-----------------

Kaleb fell back and cleared his throat, trying to get Carth's attention, but also trying not to be obvious about it.

"Do you need something?" He asked bluntly.

"Uh...yeah, kinda. Could you...uh...talk to that Cerka rep when we get there?"

"Why? You scared?" He teased.

"No, it's not that. It's just that Bastila's dad has died and she's already going to a tough time. I just don't want to make it any harder for her."

"Oh, so you're trying to protect her?"

"Don't get the wrong idea. I'm just trying to make things go smoothly and not get into another fight like the last time. Now, come on, I'll be your best friend."

"I can be your **_best _**friend! Who could refuse an offer like that!"

They both laughed as they went inside the structure.

Both of the men went about there business. Carth turned in the gafti and Kaleb walked over to Griff.

"Hey, Mission!"

She scoffed. "Kaleb, could you please tell Griff that I'm still not talking to him?"

"Sure can. Griff, if you didn't catch that, she's still not liking you so much."

He nodded. "That's ok; it's really a job for you anyway."

"Before you even tell me what this little job of yours is," He told him gruffly. "I want you to know that I'm only here because your Mission's brother, because force forbid, if you were here cousin twice removed!"

"Yeah, I'm real lucky-anyway, I made this deal with the Exchange to make a Tarisian ale."

"So how are you going to do that?" Kaleb asked abruptly.

"I need to get my hands on some tach glands. There usually found-"

"Somebody somewhere likes you, Griff. I just so happened to pick some glands off Kashyyyk."

"You have them! Please give then to me! If I don't deliver some glands, the Exchange will kill me!"

There was no way that he liked Griff, but he didn't deserve to die. Have his headtails popped off, but not murdered.

He took out the bottled glands. "Here-take them."

"Yes! I knew that you would come through for me! You...uh...wouldn't want to miss a golden opportunity to invest in my business, would you? Think of it-millions of credits."

"It's beyond my mind's capacity to figure out how you're related too Mission, but you'd be wise if you just left with those tach glands before I make you a permanent part of this floor."

Griff scoffed in a sort of pity. "It's obviously don't know anything about business…oh well. Come back later to get your cut from providing me with the glands. You deserve that at least."

He ran off towards the door before Kaleb could tell him otherwise.

Mission groaned in disapproval and disgust. "Typical Griff behavior. Look, thanks for helping him out Kaleb. I'm mad at him right now, and maybe a few broken knee caps would do him some good, but I don't want him to die."

"Hopefully he won't have to now that he has what he needs."

She nodded thoughtfully. "Maybe this will be his last scheme. After this one, he might just get it out of his system."

"If he does, it has to be of his own volition. He's the only one that can change his ways, Mission."

"You're probably right, but I can't just give up hope, you know? I have to keep trying at least."

"Hey, that's all anybody can do. But enough with the sad and depressing, let's go tell Iziz that we freed his people so we can finally get this Star Map."

--------------------

"You of your kind, Iziz of Jawa would thank you for what was done. Thanks for this task is given, recognized by other Jawas you will be." Iziz told him cheerfully.

"I'm guessing that you're saying in our debt, so thanks." Kaleb told him, still slightly confused with the Jawa language.

"Mine have returned because of you, I have things to give you." He took out a map and handed it to him. "Take and be welcome. You have saved tribe of Iziz, and we of Jawa are willing to trade."

"That's…uh…great. You're going to tell us were the Star Map is now?"

"I know of this, but it is far away. In the sands of the east, The Eastern Dune Sea, we dig for the People of Sand and find strange of the people before. We did not take it because of dragons in lair. That is where you have to go."

"Bastila, your mother said that your father's remains were in a krayt dragon lair. It's probably in that one."

"Well, we're going to find it right?" Mission asked her.

She paused. "I-we'll see." She answered finally.

"We're going to get it, so Iziz, how do we get there?" Kaleb asked him resolutely.

"Map I gave you will show the way to eastern dunes. There is a hunter, a Twi'lek. He has seen many things. Look in dunes when you go and he may help."

"Thanks again, Iziz. And good luck in the future."

"You are good friend of Jawas. We will remember when your kind are gone. Ask if you need anymore of anything."

The group left him and Kaleb presented his permit once again.

"Hmm? Oh, it's you again. I'll just let you pass. The boys in the office may need authorization in triplicate, but not me. Good hunting out there."

---------------------

Carth put his hand over his eyes. "I think that's Komad over there."

"Where? I can't see him." Mission asked, straining her eyes.

Kaleb pointed over at a hill. "That reddish blob over there is him? Whatever, let's go ask for help."

He ran over there at full speed as the others followed him. As they were about to finally approach the hunter, they heard a man scoff.

"I'm sick of waiting, Komad. How tough can this dragon be?"

The man ran inside before the Twi'lek could warn him.

**_SCREECH!_**

A terrible roar came from the lair and then just as fast it came, it settled down again.

"He shouldn't have gone in there, but I guess he couldn't wait." Komad replied sadly.

"Yeah, that's a real shame, but I was told that you were the guy I was supposed to talk to on getting the Star Map." Kaleb told him getting straight to the point.

"I do not know of this Star Map, but I can help you lure out the beast. We have to acquire something that will motivate the dragon to come out…Banthas. To get those, however, you'll need fodder, but I'm sure that Sand People won't like that."

"There are more of them?" Bastila asked incredulously.

"Yes, the Eastern Sand People are much more vicious and they won't like you touching their sacred animals."

"Banthas are sacred; well that's a new one." Carth said to them.

Kaleb sighed. "Look, I already have your fodder. What do I have to do now?"

"That's great. All you have to do now is get close to the Banthas and the smell should catch their attention."

"Sounds easy enough, but these Sand People are going to be a problem." He started to rub his chin. "Bastila and Mission, you two can go and get the Banthas, while Carth, HK, and I watch your back." He put the sticky brown clumps in Bastila's hand. "Luck."

"That's so nice of you." She told him mordantly.

"I do what I can. Come on Carth and HK, let's get ready."

_Anticipated Statement: It is about time that I can actually kill the primitives now. _

They passed a couple of Dewbacks as they went behind a hill that wasn't far away from were the girls were located.

"Ok, HK, tell us when you see someone coming."

_Conformation: I will be on guard, Master. _

"What are you planning on doing?" Carth asked him.

Kaleb slumped on the sand and closed his eyes. "I'm going to try and get a little nap. I'm exhausted."

--------------------------

"Oh, there's some!" Mission exclaimed to Bastila as she ran toward them.

"Thank the Force. I want to get this over with as soon as possible." The Jedi said to herself as she followed Mission.

Both of them waved the fodder in front of the Banthas and they assembled obediently. They tailed behind the two girls as they led the way.

"Well, this is easy enough and there's no Sand People in sight. We probably won't even need Kaleb's help." The young Twi'lek said confidently.

Bastila held up her hand. "Did you hear something?"

"No, what is it?"

"I…I don't know, but I could have sworn it was a growl."

Three Sand People Warriors lifted their gaftis in the air and did their trademark enraged roar. Bastila took out her golden double saber and Mission retrieved her double blasters.

--------------------------

_Acknowledgement: Master, the Sand People are here. Do I have your permission to attack? _

Kaleb got up, rubbed his eyes, and groaned.

"I can't wait till we get this planet's Star Map. I'm so tired." He yawned. "Are they attacking yet?"

_Answer: Yes, Master, and it seems that the female organics are fairing quite well. _

Carth laughed. "Those two are scrappy, but we should probably still help."

_Impatient Statement: I am still waiting for your word to kill them, Master. Will I have the pleasure? _

"Go wild. Besides, I have this new force power I want to try out that that I know you're going to love, HK. Enough talking about it though, let's see it in action."

_Elated Declaration: Right behind you, Master! _

-----------------------

Bastila blocked the gaftis easily and countered with a flurry. Mission backed her up with some sniper shots until another came to close to her. It raised its gafti and brought it down swiftly as she closed her eyes, but it never hit.

"What?" She slowly opened her eyes that Kaleb diced him with his sabers.

"Hey Mission! Hold on a sec." He force jumped to Bastila. "Check this out!"

He suspended both of the Sand warriors in the air without effort and started chocking them. Both of them tried to grasp at invisible hands as they made hacking noises. Bastila's eyes widened in shock and dread at what she was witnessing.

"Kaleb stop it!"

He looked at Bastila with confusion. "Why? This new power I taught myself will execute them instantly."

"No! Not like this! Please let them go!" She pleaded.

He was still baffled, but he loosened his grip on the two Sands. They fell to the ground, gasping for breath. As soon as they had enough air, they got up and ran away like scared tachs.

Kaleb looked at Bastila as if she had three heads. "Why didn't you let me finish them?"

"Kaleb, that power you used stems from the dark side. Where did you learn it?"

"I learned it from myself. It was already there, I just had to tap into it and then I wanted to test it out."

"You wanted to test it out on living creatures!" She yelled at him.

"We were going to kill them anyway, does it really matter how I did it?"

"Yes, it does! That power can fracture you until you don't even know that you're killing people for a no reason!"

"So what, when you kill someone, do you just say "Sorry, but you were bad."? Just because you use a dark side power doesn't mean that you're going to become some mindless killer!"

"How can you possibly say that and know if it's true or not!"

"Because I know myself and I thought, just for once, you knew me too."

HK and Carth caught up with them.

_Congratulatory Exclamation: Master, you were correct! It was a true wonder to behold the primitive meatbags heart levels decreasing slowly, but I am stunned that you let them live. _

"Yeah, well, you're not the only one. Mission let's get the Banthas to follow us again."

She waved the fodder a second time, and the furry beasts followed again. Mission led them to Komad as he waved.

"Good! Come to me!"

Kaleb sprinted in his direction. "Bantha delivery, that'll be fifty credits."

"I'll take that as your sense of humor, but now that we have these creatures we can lure the dragon out."

The young man grinned. "Great. Mission, give me your fodder real quick."

She did as she was told and he flung it into the distant cave. The Banthas stomped enthusiastically toward the fodder as the group waited. The dragon bellowed unexpectedly and hammered out of its lair.

"It's a big one!" Komad exclaimed whose eyes were filled with a mixture if excitement and fear.

As it got closer to the fleeing Banthas, mine charges erupted around it and it collapsed to the ground with an anguished cry.

"A shame that we had to use mines to bring this mighty creature down, but it had to be down for the economy's sake." The male Twi'lek turned around. "Thanks are to be given you, friend, for helping me with this task."

Kaleb shook his head in disagreement. "You set the mines up that killed it, so you deserve all the credit."

"You give me more credit than I deserve sentient, if you had not brought the Banthas, it never would have come out. I must return to the lodge now, but I have a feeling that our path will cross again."

He shook Kaleb's hand and departed. Kaleb went to salvage the pearl that Bastila's mother talked about, from the dragon's remains. The rest of the team went inside the cave, however.

"Hey, isn't that one of those Star Map thingys?" Mission pointed towards the rear of the lair. "Kinda weird finding it in the back of the krayt dragon's lair, don't you think?"

As Bastila opened the map, Kaleb entered the cave and started inspecting it meticulously.

"The Star Map is an artifact of the dark side. The may have been drawn here by its dark power, only to be enslaved by it."

"Either way," Carth told them as he brushed his pants off. "We got what we want."

"Great. I can't wait to get back to the ship. I have sand…ugh…everywhere."

"Mission, and I are going to go to the Cerka office to meet her brother; you two will be alright right?"

Bastila nodded distractedly, still studying the Star Map and Kaleb was digging through dead bodies.

"Uh…yeah…we're going to take HK with us ok?" She nodded again. "Bye."

They left the cave and started to walk back to the dune sea.

"Bastila…I found it." Kaleb told him solemnly.

"Found wha-" She stopped talking abruptly and placed her hand over her mouth. "You've found…my father's…holocron."

She reached to retrieve it with a shaky hand and activated the tiny device. Images of a fairly attractive middle aged man appeared in the hologram. Kaleb was speechless when he saw the resemblance between the two. He had the same color hair and he had the same sense of being…regal, that proud air. It flashed to a scene where he had Bastila as a baby and her father was crying with an incredible joy in his eyes as he rocked her gently. Kaleb suddenly found it very hard to swallow at the moment, but still had to glance at his bond-mate. Her face was mirrored with sorrow, as if wanting to hold in her tears and yet release them at the same time. She watched the images intently, but he felt that she wanted to turn away also. A third memory passed where the man was swinging, now a child Bastila, around and she had that earnest wide smile on her face. He finally stopped and both of them fell down from dizziness, but still laughed after they recovered.

The device fell to the ground as Bastila held herself with both arms while a single tear descended from her closed eye, down her cheek. Kaleb was gripped by her grief, like a clawed wound in their bond, and held his chest hoping that it would subside. It was the kind of extreme internal pain that you only felt when you lost someone so dear to you, that you truly didn't know where to go anymore. He had felt this kind of suffering before when his mother died, but to have to experience it twice in a lifetime was…insufferable. Bastila collapsed on her knees and starting sobbing uncontrollably with her face in her hands. Kaleb once again felt the raw emotion coming from Bastila's unhampered bond and stumbled from the sheer influence of it. His mind was made up; he had to do something-**anything** to stop this hurt inside of her. He quickly kneeled in front of her and embraced her gently. With tearful cries of protest, Bastila tried with all her might to sever this intimate reaction; but Kaleb just held on tighter until all she could do was tap her hands against his shoulders. She was angry by the fact that she was happy he held on, but absolutely sickened that he had seen her in such a vulnerable state. Crying was a sign of weakness that could be exploited, even pitied; and she couldn't stand him feeling sympathetic for her.

"Bastila," Kaleb started thinking on his choice of words carefully. "I'm not going to lie and say that this…hollow feeling is going to get better anytime soon, but…I would like to try to ease the pain for you. I don't…want you to have to go through the same experience I had to go through; especially not having to deal with this alone."

Bastila struggled to look up at him and the reaction from her reddening eyes pierced through his. She had tried to open her mouth and say something, but he put his finger on her lips.

"Shut-up. I'm going to stay here with you as long as it takes."

Her body felt like it was being consumed with an endless sense of misery, but deep down, she was grateful for his compassion. Kaleb dabbed the corner of her eyes with his robe and smiled.

"If you can take my dry humor, you'll be able to lick this in no time."

She tried, but couldn't manage to smile back, so she decided to rest her head on his warm bare chest instead. He was stunned that she showed such an act of trust, and began to smooth her hair back.

"Shh." He whispered soothingly. "The tough jedi princess and my most cunning rival can't be seen like this."

She sniffed, enamored with his scent and in a trance from the special song that his heart played for her. The rhythm in which his chest moved up and down form his breathing also added to the beat, matching hers perfectly.

Kaleb backed away slightly, lifted her head up, and wiped her eyes again.

"Just tell me when you're ready to leave."

She sniffed again. "I'll be alright…thank you, Kaleb."

He gave her a kind smile that made her feel like every thing in the world would be alright.

"Happy to be of service, ma'm. Anytime you need me to be on personal tissue duty, just ask."

He got up, lifting Bastila along with him, and moved a strand of hair out of her face. Even though the were standing less that two feet away from each other, she immediately felt chilly despite the humid conditions. Kaleb let go of her hand, bent down to recover the fallen holocron, opened her hand another time, and placed the device there.

"Whatever you choose to do with this, I won't hold it against you. All I want is for you to make the choice with your heart."

The End 

Ya'll liked how I put that little heart thing in there for Valentine's Day, didn't you? Anyways, sorry I ended it like that, but if I kept going it would've been too long. I'm going do my best to get the next chap. in faster because I can't even wait to write it. Till the though, tell me you think of this one!


	8. Dustbowl pt 3

Thank you for the beautiful reviews everybody! They're a great inspiration to me and make me want to write more and sooner.

Like I said, I couldn't wait to get this story out there so I tried to have this one out earlier.

This one was a challenge because it's all romancey. I tried my best to capture their feelings, but I've never been in love, so it was kinda difficult. It was sorta like somebody asking you to describe ice cream, but you've never tasted it before.

So, this is the third and last part to the whole Dustbowl chapter. We've come a long way, and I think it's time to put all the chips on the table. Pretty much, time that we move to the more…juicy sections of Bastila and Kaleb's relationship. There's going to be fights, (In fact, I'm pretty sure there's one in the beginning) a big steamy pile of denial, and even…aww some romance. Sparks will be flying and revelations made. But why talk about it when you can read? Also this will again be a direct continuation of the last chap. so if you're lost, you might want to read the last paragraph in the former chap. Enjoy and Review please!

Chapter 8

Bastila nodded in agreement. "Do you still think that I should give the holocrom to my mother?"

"I do, but for the same reasons I told you of before. Your mom said that she was dying and I don't want your last conversation with her, be an argument."

"Even if I considered giving it to her, we would end up disputing either way." She sighed bitterly. "How I despise talking to her."

Kaleb hated to put her in this kind of situation, with what just happened, but he didn't want her making a serious mistake. "If she was lying, don't you think it sad that your mother has to make-up such an exaggerated lie jus so you can find the holocrom?"

She understood where he was coming from, but the thought of her mother being responsible for the death made it hard to forgive.

"I'll…think about it. I should…try and remember my training." She closed her eyes and put two fingers on her forehead. "I should be able to let go of this but…I just can't. I am my father's daughter, am I any less deserving to keep his most valued possession?"

"Besides the fact that it brings you more grief than happiness every time you look at the images?"

"That is not the point! I am not sad from the holos, but from the fact that my father is dead!"

"But do you really want to remind yourself of that each time you even think about the device?" He shook his head. "Even if you don't think so, you and your mom are more alike than you think. Both of you loved this man dearly, but both of you have too much pride to admit that you're wrong."

She gave him a vicious glare that gleamed with hatred. "Don't you dare compare me to her!" She spat. "You have no right to preach anyway! I'm positive that if you found a holocrom of your mother, you wouldn't be running to your father with open arms and good news!"

"You're…right, but then your so much better than me, aren't you?" Kaleb asked with cynical sarcasm dripping of his question.

An awkward pause engulfed them, while both looked away from each other.

"I'm sor-."

"I apolo-."

Both of them paused again trying to give the other permission to speak, but neither willing to take the chance to go first.

"I didn't mean-"

"It's just that-"

Bastila and Kaleb stopped again, but this time he decided to talk first.

"We should head back to the cantina." He said finally and started to walk away.

He had tried so hard to help her through her troubles, but she constantly refused him. To be pushed away every time and still have the want to come back. He didn't even know why he tried.

_Maybe it's because you actually like her. _The little voice in the back of his head told him.

_That's impossible, I mean come on, this is Bastila we're talking about. _

_So? _

_So nothing's going to happen. Don't get me wrong though, she's gorgeous, has a great body, and even though we argue all the time at least we're talking… _He almost kicked himself. _No Kaleb, don't fall for the princess. _

He knew that he had gotten closer to her than he really wanted to while he was playing his game on her. He tried so hard to get Bastila to admit that she liked him, that he was oblivious to his attraction instead. He kept trying to convince himself that they were only friends, but he knew inside that the feelings were real. There was no denying it, but…there was never really a good time to talk. He couldn't just bring it up at any old random moment.

_Hey, Bastila, I know your father just died and all, but I just wanted to say that I like you. _He chuckled softly at his thoughts. _Bastila, I like you. No, I mean I like, like you. Could I hold your hand? _

He scoffed, knowing that none of those tactics would work. She was a jedi, a mighty strict one too, and they don't believe in emotional entanglements.

_That's no excuse. That code has never stopped you before, has it?_

Kaleb rubbed his forehead wearily. _She's got me arguing with myself already._

------------------

As they entered the city barricade, Bastila glanced over at Kaleb briefly and saw that he was frustrated about something. She knew that she shouldn't have brought his mother into their fight and deeply regretted it. She was about to reach out to their bond to see if she could read his emotions better, but stopped, hating the fact that she cared if he was mad or not in the first place. Not only was that bothering her, but also a ridiculous amount of questions were buzzing around in her head.

_Why did he comfort her? Why wouldn't he let go? Why did she feel so warm when she was that close beside him? Why would she always turn their talks into a confrontation when she got uncomfortable? Why did he never lose patience with her or lose interest? And one of the most important questions of all, why did she get hesitant when she was with him more often? _

Her head was throbbing from the complexity of the situation and the fear of the answers. The only desire she had was to be able to lock herself in her room and meditate, but the problem with her mother had to be dealt with one way or the other. Bastila took a deep breath as they went inside the cantina once again.

"Force, help me." She prayed softly as they went to the back to face her mother.

---------------

"Back already? Have you even looked for the holocrom?" Helena asked Bastila sternly.

"We've found it Mother, I'm just not sure if I want to give it to you."

"You would deny me even that wouldn't you?"

"I have denied you nothing, although, the same cannot be said of you. You may think that I don't remember what it was like before I left for the order, but I do." She pointed at her with an accusatory tone. "**_You_** were the one who pushed Father to go on one treasure hunt after another. **_You_** loved leaving in wealth. Do you think I don't remember the fights?" **_You _**were eager to send me to the Jedi, even though I didn't want to go! **_You _**took Father away from me, and now this holocrom is all I have left of him! "

_Bastila wasn't always happy to become a jedi? _Kaleb thought never knowing that there was a time when she wasn't holding on to her precious code.

"Fool girl!" Her mother exclaimed. "You have a strange way of remembering things. That wasn't-"

Bastila held up her hand. "No. I don't wish to argue anymore, Mother. It's time we parted ways; for both of or benefits."

Kaleb knew that he had to intervene or they would never solve their issues.

"Maybe one of you should give the other a chance?"

Helena looked at him as if a billion credits flew out of his ass.

"And what, did you get this man to speak for you when you couldn't!"

"That's absurd! He spoke of his own will, but for the reason while I'll never know."

"At least hear your mom out, Bastila." He practically pleaded before their next showdown started.

She glowered at him. "You don't know her. My mother is notoriously deceptive when she wants something."

"Is it too difficult to believe that I am a dying woman who simply wishes to see her husband one last time!" Helena interjected.

"I find it hard to trust anything that comes out of your mouth, Mother."

"Stop debating against each other!" He exclaimed angrily with his hands in the air. "Bastila do you need the holocrom? I mean die without it need?"

"No…I can remember my father well enough, but I ask you, why does she deserve it any more than I!"

"She's your mother, that should be qualification enough." His companion had gone silent and her mother was shocked by his outburst, but he wasn't done yet. "And Ms. Helena, do you need the device so badly?"

"I can also reminisce moments with my husband also…"

"Then am I the only one who thinks this whole argument is pure nonsense! **_Your _**husband and **_your_** father has died and the only thing you can do is claw each other out. I'm sure that he wouldn't have wanted you two to behave like this on the event of his death. He would have wanted the two loves in his life to cope and get through their issues together."

Bastila looked down at the floor in shame. "He's right, Mother. It's humiliating, but I just…I find it so hard to forget the past. I'm…sorry."

Helena shook her head. "No, I was hard on you dear, but I always expected more. I wasn't the best mother to you, I know that." She sighed. "Your father loved you so. He wanted you to be just like him…he wanted to take you with him on his treasure hunts, but I said that they were too dangerous."

"It isn't the safest job out there." Kaleb concurred trying to give her statement more of a positive light.

The woman nodded remorsefully. "I always tried to keep him from the dangerous ones, but he would have none of it. It was a reckless life we led, always moving…I didn't want that for you."

Bastila held her mother's hand, knowing that this experience was hard on her. "Is that why you sent me to the order?"

"Look around. What do your father and I have to show for all those years of hunting? Nothing. That was no life for anyone, especially not someone as gifted as you. Your father…he spent all his last years trying to pay for my treatments. That's why he went for the pearls. I begged him not to but…"

"Your treatments?" The Jedi asked confused.

"I'm dying, Bastila. I did not lie about that. It's been a long time coming and there's really nothing that can be done anymore. I told your father to let me go, but you know how he was. Stubborn; just like you."

"I'm so sorry, Mother. I don't know what to say…"

Her words started dissolve as an old memory started to play out in Kaleb's head.

-----------------

_His mom was on a dingy and torn mattress with three pairs of sheets on top of her. _

"_Kaleb, I know that you don't want to hear this, but that's not going to change the fact that I'm dying." _

_A little boy of four years clung to her bedside as if attached to it with a terrified look on his face. "No! I can get you help-" _

_She interrupted him with a violent attack of coughs, which she had to take a few recovery breaths before speaking again. _

"_Don't…be so naïve. I taught you…better than that." _

_His mother grasped her son's hands and young Kaleb shivered from the coldness of her skin. He automatically rubbed his hands against hers to create friction, giving warmth, but it had no effect. _

_He wasn't a ways off from panicking, voice quivering from alarm. "Mom, do you want me to get you more blankets?" _

"_There's no time for that!" Genevieve snapped, but her features softened quickly. "Son, when I'm gone, life is going to misuse and abuse you; but you're not going to let it. You have to swear to me that you'll never give up-no matter how hard anybody or anything beats down on you or tells you can't achieve something." _

_She gave another hacking cough, but still had her eyes fixed determinedly on his for his reply. The boy looked at the dirt ground and nodded. _

"_Say…it and…look at me." She grabbed his hand, urging her son vigorously. _

_Kaleb looked up at her obediently. "I…won't give up or stop trying." _

_She wheezed. "No…matter what." _

"_N-no matter what." _

"_Good." Genevieve let his hand go limp and rolled her head back to the center of the pillow and stared at the numerously patched ceiling. _

"_Mom?" Kaleb asked quietly. _

_She didn't respond and silence once again dominated the room. _

"_M-mom?" He questioned again, his voice shaky. _

_The woman finally turned her head to him with a spaced out look on her face. _

"_What a handsome boy you are." She told him in wonderment. "You look so much like my Joseph." _

_Even though Kaleb was young at the time, he still knew to despise the person who she was talking about. His mother would do anything for him while he just took advantage of whatever he could. _

"_Little boy, could you try and find me some more covers? It's awfully cold in here." Genevieve asked with clear delusion. _

_He nodded and quickly ran to his room to take the covers off his own mattress. She was looking at the ceiling in great interest again when he came back and draped the sheet around her. _

_His mom glanced at him. "Thank you." She rubbed his head weakly. "Such a nice young man." _

_Genevieve started to cough, but they were softer and weaker than the previous ones. Her breaths became shallow until they stopped altogether and her hand fell from his head and hung from the side of the bed. _

"_Mom?" He asked horrified. "Mommy!" _

_There was no shallow breathing to answer him this time-his mother was…gone. Kaleb reached up, closed her eyes, and pulled the covers over her face. The boy blinked and pinched himself to see if he was really awake or another nightmare. Once a tear had fallen from his eye when he realized that he had blood running down his arm from pinching too hard, young Kaleb walked over to their…his communication console and alerted the authorities. _

_-------------- _

"Here, Mother, take these 500 credits. It's all I have. Go to Correcant and find a good doctor."

"Bastila, I've already told you that nothing can be done-"

"Please." She begged, with a sympathetic stare. "I want to talk you again after we're done with our mission."

Helena nodded gratefully and took the credits from her. "Well, you said that you had important business and you never were one to mince words. Hey, you there!" She directed at Kaleb, breaking him out of his trance-like state. "You take care of my daughter, you hear me!"

He composed himself and smiled brightly at her. "I'll do that and better ma'm.

"Good; she needs someone to look out for her. It will help ease my mind to know that you'll be the one doing it." The woman faced her daughter. "Now I want you to go out and make me and your father proud."

"I'll try."

Kaleb felt good as he saw them hug each other and bid farewell. He didn't know what happened between them, but it elated him that they were on good terms with each other. As they released each other, they said their goodbyes again and Bastila started walking up to the front of the cantina. He tried to shake the cold feeling he got from his vision. It had been some time since that particular memory showed up, but it was still as strong as ever. He rubbed the back of his neck to ease the tension he felt there and started to follow his bond-mate.

"Hold it!" Helena ordered as she pulled Kaleb's sleeve. He turned back around to see her smiling. "So you like my daughter, do you?"

He was dumbstruck that she had figured it out so soon, but quickly grinned. "You've caught me."

"Don't worry. My daughter might not show it, but she's interested in you also."

He gave her a puzzled expression. "How do you know this?"

"The two of you are just like her father and I when we were young, Trust me, it's unmistakable."

"Even if that's true, she's not going to come out and admit it with that damn jedi code."

"You're a jedi, and you don't believe in their teachings?"

"I'll tell you the same thing I tell everyone else; I'm not a jedi, I'm just here for the cool weapon. And saving the galaxy has it's perks too, we get to live you know."

The woman laughed. "I can see why she likes you now, you're her complete opposite. She also has good taste because you're not half bad looking either."

"Aww shucks ma'm, you just raised my self-esteem by twelve points."

She shook her head. "It was a pleasure to meet you, and if you play your cards right, you might just become my son-in-law."

He took her hand and kissed it. "The pleasure was all mine, Ms. Helena. I'm counting the moments till our next encounter."

She chuckled. "Smooth and you have manners?"

He gently let go off her hand and smirked. "Comes with the combo package, ma'm. Momma didn't raise no fool."

Helena laughed as she departed at for the door, but before she left, she winked at Bastila.

"I approve. He's definitely a keeper."

Her daughter was lost as to what she meant by that, but her mother just left with a knowing smile on her face.

Kaleb walked up to her like he had just achieved immortal greatness.

"You're such a ham, do you know that?"

"Am I a cute ham?"

Bastila scoffed. "Does that really matter?"

"It could make all the difference in the world, but it doesn't really matter because your mom said I was cute."

"Is that what the two of you were discussing?"

"Ooh…can't tell you that because if I did I would have to kill you. The conversations between the mother and the potential boyfriend are a sacred and well-guarded ritual. I've already said too much."

"And what makes you a potential boyfriend?"

"That's an easy one. You're infatuated with me."

"And you came to this conclusion without my thoughts?"

"Yup, but enough about me. What do you think about me?"

"Their probably the same as your views…except completely opposite."

"I don't believe you, but really, do you feel better now?"

She sighed happily. "Yes, making up with my mother has brought me a lot of peace. More than I thought it would have, thank you for pushing me toward it."

"You're good for it, but I do have a question that I've been wondering about."

"Yes?"

"Why did the Council send me with you on this mission? You would think that they would want more experienced people on such a dangerous journey."

She looked at him as if what he asked was the easiest question in the world. "Why? I could not accomplish this on my own. I need the aid of others-especially one who is so strong in the Force. The bond between us also made you a natural choice. Besides, the events on Taris proved that the Force wanted to bring us together for this mission, and there is little left to chance when the Force is involved. Is that not enough for you?"

"See, the only thing that's confusing me here is, if the force is bringing us together so strongly; why do you keep trying to resist my undeniable charms?"

"I said," She restated, her anger rising. "That the Force brought us together for the mission: To stop Malak. I hardly think that the Force would be pushing us towards a romantic involvement when the galaxy is at stake!"

"Why not? You even said that the force acts as it wills."

Bastila raised her eyebrow in a warning manner. "Could you please try to stay focused? I doubt the Council would approve if they knew we were talking about our mutual attraction when we should be saving the galaxy from Malak."

"Yeah, yeah." Kaleb told her absent-mindedly. "I'm sure they wouldn't like anything we'd-hold on!" He couldn't help, but snigger. "You did just say mutual attraction? I knew that you were interested in me!"

"Mutual attr-I never said-it's just an expression!" She told him flustered about her words slipping.

"An expression of _love_. He told her with a gigantic grin.

"Whatever our feelings…uh, I mean…whatever **_your _**feelings, you have to try and ignore them."

"Too bad they didn't have lying classes back at Academy, because you definitely could have used them."

"I am not lying! There is nothing going on between us so don't let this complicate things."

"There's nothing complicated about it, in fact, I think you let that little tidbit to grab my interest. But since I know you're going to deny it, I'll even break what you've said down." He put up his pointer finger. "One: Mutual: feelings expressed by each or with regard to the other, in the same relationship to each other, or shared by or common to two or more people." He put two fingers up. "Two: Attraction: the act or capability of attracting, the quality of attracting; charm, and my personal favorite, the gravitational pull exerting by one body on another."

"I now know who to come to when I need a word defined." She gasped. "Actually why don't you define the word "wrong" right now?"

"I'm not wrong about anything-you like me."

"No, I do not!"

"You know you do."

"Not in the least. I see you only as a companion that has joined me on this mission."

"Oh, so now I'm you're companion?"

"You're using what I said out of context!"

"Well since we're companions, I have to give you a cute nickname; don't I?"

"You will do no such thing!"

"How about "_pookie_" or "_my wittle sugarbear_?"

Bastila mustered up all the spite that she could give to throw at him. "You don't want to know what will happen if you call me those." she finished in a low tone.

"So you don't like 'em, huh? How about…hmm…Bas? Can I call you that?"

No you may not!"

"So, Bas, do you think I'm handsome?"

"Did I not just say that you could not refer to me as that!"

"Bas, do you want to be my girlfriend? Yow wanna kissy kissy poo poo on the Ebon Hawk?" He asked in a baby voice.

She blushed from the directness of his questions.

"Bas, I love it when you blush. It shows that even you can be caught off guard. Surprise, surprise."

"I thought you wanted to know about the Council's decision!"

"But you're so much more compelling, than that conversation, Bas!"

Her face pinked slightly, but she ignored him as usual. "Finding the missing pieces of the Star Map is our only hope of is our only hope of locating the Star Forge and defeating Malak. The Council explained all of this quite clearly."

He scoffed. "Clearly to you, Bas. I had no choice in the matter either way. That's another thing I don't like about jedi, they're so manipulative."

"Should there be an option to save people's lives? The Council has decreed it, so we will carry it out."

"For you to have that much blind faith in them is scary. I don't think that's enough reason for anyone to accept it."

"I admit, I've wondered why the Council sent us without a Master and if this was about more than stopping Malak."

Kaleb was stunned. "**_You're _**questioning the Council?"

"I've thought this was a test of my own abilities. I've mused about the Council wanting to see how I guided you throughout our quest. I also wondered if they were trying to find out if I was ready to become a Master myself and then realized how foolish such thoughts were. As they had explained, sending a Master in our group would only have drawn unwanted attention from the Sith. With the fate of the galaxy threatened, the Council would not risk it to merely test me. They have calculated every possible course of action and in the end chose the only option available."

"That's all fine and dandy, but I'm still not convinced."

"You must learn to trust in the Council." Bastila said reassuringly. "Your destiny will come at it's appointed time-you mustn't be so impatient."

"Woah, so now you're trying to go all jedi on me?" He asked indignantly. "You're the one who thought this was her big chance for _Masterhood_! Ooh, look at me, I'm a Master. Please make my day by letting me lecture you about something."

"_Must _you be so frustrating! I admit, I had a foolish moment of pride, but I am over it. Now I am focused on my true responsibilities." She threw her hands in agitation. "All I try to is help you, and yet you battle me at every turn!"

He laughed at Bastila, only achieving to make her more agitated. "What can I say? It's the only fun I can have on this mission."

"You find annoying me to no end, entertaining!"

"Yeah…it really is, but I don't know why you're going ballistic on me; you're the one who started it."

"I started it! You were the one who brought up the issue of the Council! You were the one who questioned the Council's intentions! You are the one who mocked me for being tested!"

"Hey, calm down Bas, I was just joking with you. What happened to all that jedi self-control?"

"I-You are a very odd man, do you know that?"

"But you love every single bit of me. " He told her with a seductive smirk that made her stomach get butterflies.

"I don't know if I should be furious that you keep joking about serious matters or…if I should be grateful that you can always lighten the mood." She said with a little smile.

"See that's why I'm so lovable; I'm a mood lightener. There has to be a person who takes nothing seriously in every action story to save the galaxy."

"And so you've taken this task upon yourself?"

"Pretty much." He sighed. "It's a brutal job, but somebody has to it."

She scoffed. "You're hopeless. Come, we still need meet the others at the Cerka office."

"Um…this is kinda embarrassing, but I have to go to use the bathroom."

She gave him a confused look. "Alright…I'm sure you don't need assistance."

"You should go ahead, though. That gunk from the food dispenser on the ship is leaving me gassy. I've been holding in farts all day."

Bastila nodded with a disgusted look. "When you're done with…your priorities, meet us back at the ship."

"You've got it."

His companion left while Kaleb grinned, relieved that his plan had worked.

-----------------

"You who has helped us returns." Iziz inquired as he looked up at Kaleb. "Hope is given that you have found what you were searching for in Eastern Dunes."

"We did find what we were looking for. Thanks again for that by the way, but I need another favor from you."

"Favor is earned from task you completed, what is it you wish?"

Kaleb reached into his knapsack and took out a solid silver orb. "I've found this off that dragon so I assumed that it was it's pearl. If you could, I would like it if you could turn this into a necklace for me."

"This Iziz can do. Pearl of dragon is most precious metal, but easily bent into crafting."

"That's great! I would like it to be something elegant and have the inscription K and B on it. It's for…a special friend of mine."

"Honor Iziz would feel from this task. Take short time, maybe six of your hours?"

"Ok, that's perfect. Will I pick it up from you?"

"We Jawas are everywhere and find you we will. Doubt of this is no concern."

Kaleb smiled. "Alright. I'll see you later." He started to jog away, but turned around. "And remember-something classy!"

Iziz nodded and scurried off to the other side of the building.

---------------------

"Mission what's wrong?" Kaleb inquired when he saw her sitting somberly on her bed.

"Griff left a note to the receptionist for us when we went to the office."

The young man tensed just from hearing the name of that space slug.

"What did he do now?"

"The note told me that he left from his failed business venture and sorry that he disappointed me."

"So he abandoned you again!"

"Yes…but I know now that I couldn't have changed him no matter what I did. Maybe he'll never learn his lesson and that kinda hurts, you know?"

"Mission, you're well beyond your years to realize and accept that."

She nodded with a melancholy look in her eyes while Kaleb came up with an idea.

"Hey, everybody's been sorta on edge lately, so how about we have a night on the town? A party at the cantina before we leave for Mannan."

Mission's face brightened drastically as she beamed at him. "That would be perfect, Kaleb! I'll go tell everyone!"

She rushed out of the room to spread the good news with the crew.

He shook his head. "That should make everyone let off some steam and kill that two hours at the same time." His robe clung to his sweat soaked skin and he decided to take a shower to get rid of the dusty smell that was destined to come. He passed Bastila's room and felt that she was in it, but didn't want to bother her until he had all his preparations complete. He smirked, not being able to wait for his plans to come into action and retreated to the 'fresher.

"That Twi'lek girl-"

"Mission." Kaleb interjected the Mandalorian's statement.

"Whatever, she told me that we're going to have a little party tonight. 'Bout time we had some fun. I was getting sick of being cooped up in this crate anyway."

"You and everybody else on the ship, but if the heat factor goes down, relaxing will be good for everybody."

"Heat?" He snorted. "Bah! My homeworld was a desert planet too, but at least it had some green in it. This place is just a dying dustbowl."

Kaleb chuckled as her picked up some scissors and put a clean robe on his lap.

"What are you doing there?"

"Oh this? I'm going arts and crafts on my robe to make it more accommodating to my needs."

"Won't the princess have a hissy fit for cutting sacred jedi robes?" Canderous asked humorously.

He started cutting the sleeves off. "Probably, but then it's not like I'm new to her anger."

The older man laughed at Kaleb's remark. "I'll be at the cantina. I haven't had a decent drink since we left Taris. Damn jedi on Dantooine banning hard ale." He murmured to himself as he left the room. Kaleb chuckled while he completed his project and put it on.

"Perfect! This is definitely going to be my party robe."

Mission approached his room, "Kaleb, I've-hey, looking good. Who are you trying to impress?"

"Thanks and what makes you think that I'm trying to impress someone? Can't I just look my best?"

"And not have an agenda to go with it?" She thought for two seconds. "Nope."

"Your right, but did you tell everybody about the party?"

"I did, but Juhani, Jolee, and Bastila, didn't want to come."

"I kind of expected that. Juhani is sort of a loner, Jolee's and old goat, and Bastila's dad just died so I can understand her reluctance."

Mission nodded sadly. "I also wanted to tell you that Carth and Big Z are waiting for us."

"Then let's not keep them waiting, I think I might need some drinks myself."

Speaking of drinks…" Mission stated with a hidden plan.

"If you can sneak them past Zalbaar, then it's alright with me. Just don't overdo it; the hangover's will kill you."

They both laughed as they headed to the loading ramp.

----------------

"I've got to tell you, this is just what I've needed!" Carth exclaimed to Kaleb as they were sitting on bar stools, enjoying their drinks.

Kaleb looked around at his other crewmates. Mission was dancing to the upbeat music as Zalbaar gladly stuffed his face with real food. All two tons of it. Canderous was talking to this woman who looked like she was going to puke from being so drunk.

"It looks like they're all having a good time!" He shouted over the vibrant beat back to Carth.

"Everyone, but you that is."

Kaleb smiled guiltily. "I guess I'm just worried about Bastila."

The pilot nodded. "Yeah, that was a tough break for her dad to die. Luckily, I never liked mine!"

"I'll drink to that! To having miserable fathers!"

They laughed, clinked their glasses together, and drank their fill.

Kaleb put his glass down and glanced at a clock on a wall.

"Have somewhere to go?" His older friend asked him curiously.

"Huh? Oh," He smiled sheepishly. "It's nothing really."

Carth sighed. "Well, I don't want to lose my drinking buddy, but you should go to her."

The younger man grinned. "Thanks, Carth."

"Sure, whatever. Just go ahead and leave me alone."

"I don't know about the sad part, but you won't be lonely if you talk to that woman who was checking you out all night."

Carth looked across the cantina, and surely enough, he found a brunette smiling at him.

"Hey bartender!" Kaleb yelled.

"Whaddya need?"

"Give me two of your finest bottles of Tarisian ale, my good man." He told him with a phony accent. "Money is of no object."

"Smooth, very smooth!" Carth said to him laughing.

The bartender retrieved the two bottles and he paid the man.

Kaleb gave one of them to Carth. "Here, now you can use these as an opening liner."

"Thanks. Who knows? We both might have good luck tonight."

He gave him a thumbs-up sign and departed from the noisy cantina.

"Now all I need is that necklace and I'll be good to go."

Kaleb started to walk towards the town's barricade to meet Iziz, but heard a scuffling sound behind him. He stopped suddenly and glanced around, but saw no one. As he kept walking, he kept his guard alert for an ambush. It could've been some more dark jedi ready to fight him, but he had his sabers, so they would be no threat. There was some more scuffling and a figure jumped out of the shadows. Kaleb quickly flicked his saber in his hand and powered it. A lone Jawa shivered terribly from the offensive maneuver and begged him not to hold hostilities.

"L-Leader…Iziz has sent me to deliver something that was asked of him."

The alien dug into its robe and pulled out a beautiful silver chain mixed with ivory pieces. Strange, but exquisite, jewels were encrusted in it, but the most enthralling part had to be the cut dragon pearl in the center. It was still a sphere, but was smaller and smooth. Also, as promised, it had the inscription on it.

"I'm really going to pay extra now, but I can't complain because this is exactly what I wanted."

The Jawa shook its hooded head. "Payment is not needed, reimbursed you have done already with saving some of our tribe."

"You're giving this to me for free?" He asked shocked. "All I can say is thank you. Please, tell Iziz that I'm very grateful."

"Do this I will." It gave him the necklace and returned back to the shadows.

Kaleb put the gift in his pocket and ran to the ship with a lopsided smile on his face. When he opened the door to get into the docking area, he hurried onto the ship. The ship was eerily quiet without it's other residents. He passed through the meeting room and saw that Juhani and Jolee were asleep. He couldn't deny the fact that he was happy that they were like that. He didn't really want an audience for what he was about to do. Kaleb walked to Bastila's room, but noticed that the room was dark when he got closer.

He knocked on her door. "Bastila, are you in there? I've brought back party favors!"

No response came back to his ears, so he put his ear on her cold metallic door and didn't hear anything.

_If she's not in her room, where is she? _

He looked at the wine he was carrying. "Well, I guess I should put you in the cooler."

His walk was slow to the storage room from being slightly disappointed that his ideas didn't go according to plan. As he put the wine away, he was swallowed in a pit of emotional distraught. The same kind he had felt back at the dragon's lair, but…unleashed and no longer restrained. Wherever Bastila was, her anguish was so deep that it could not be stopped once started. He closed his eyes and felt through force to find out where she was. He saw her aura in a dark room in the back of the ship. Kaleb rushed to her, but stopped abruptly when he heard her sobs.

_What am I doing! If she moved to this secluded and far back place, she obviously wants to be alone! _

He knew that he was being impulsive, but the urge to comfort her was taking over him. Kaleb walked over to the door and was about to knock on it, but stopped and started pacing.

_This is none of my business! I need to learn how to keep out of her problems! _

He walked to the door again.

_But her mother entrusted her to you. She wanted you to take care of her and here you are afraid to knock on a door! _

"I don't know what to do!" He whispered sharply as his heart was racing in his chest faster and faster.

He put his hands on the wall and took a deep breath. "You can do this! You're just here to help her out with her grief."

He approached the door again and knocked on it softly.

"Yes?" A hoarse voice replied.

"I…Bastila, are you alright?" It was the only and first thing that came to his mind.

"Kaleb?" Her voice strained with panic for him to be here now, of all times. "I thought you went out with the others."

"I did, but I came back. I…was getting pretty tired. Uh…do you mind if I come in?"

Bastila wiped her eyes, released the door's lock, and opened it.

Her eyes were red from crying and dried-up tear trails paraded along her cheeks. Kaleb felt like punching himself for coming so late and making her go through so much alone.

"Oh, I'm sorry." She moved out of the way. "You can come in."

He went into the sparely lit room and stood in a corner while she sat on a bed.

"I…uh…didn't even know this room existed." He said to her to break the ice.

Bastila saw that he looked so uncomfortable standing up, with his hands in his pockets.

"Um…you don't have to stand." She moved over a space to make room from him. "Here-sit down."

Kaleb shook his head. "No, that's ok; you can have the bed. I'm alright standing up."

"I can share, and you're making me nervous. So please just sit down on the bed."

"If I'm making you nervous, I'll just sit down on the floor."

"You shouldn't and won't have to sit on the floor because this bed is big enough for the both of us."

He sighed, knowing that she would persist until he was on the bed, so he poked out his lip and stomped to the bed. Kaleb stuck his butt out and plopped next to her.

She chuckled lightly. "You're so stupid…"

He was elated that he had mad her feel even a bit better.

"I would think that we would be above name calling." He told her with a smile. "I like to think that I've utilized my slowness and put in into effective means.

Bastila looked at him and gasped.

He smirked. "I'll take that as a good thing."

"You've cut off the sleeves to your robe?"

"I plead the fifth. You can't make me incriminate myself, but yeah, I did. It was hot and have six of these things so I just made one of the heat ready."

A pause washed over them as each took careful glances when the other wasn't looking.

"So, Miss Bastila, do you want to tell me about what's bothering you…or, you know, that's always that last resort; the weather. If you were wondering, it's still hot." He snapped his fingers. "No, hold on, I got it. Do you want me to tell you about all the places sand got in today?" He took off his boot and pored out a little hill of sand. "Oh rapture, I've always wanted to know what it was like to be a beach."

She shook her head. It was too cute how he rambled on and made jokes when he was nervous. Another one of his guards, out of his, just as plentiful layers. She would have liked to think that she was seeing Kaleb's true self, but there was no way it was possible. Not with what the Council had done to him. If only they could have met under different circumstances, if only he didn't go to war…

He imitated static. "Kaleb to Bastila, are you there?"

She blinked returning her thoughts back to their discussion.

"Yes?"

"I wanted to know how you were feeling?"

"Right." She faltered before speaking again. "Forgive me for being hesitant, but you must understand that I'm not use to doing things like this. Usually I would meditate until I found peace in the Force, but for me explain what I'm feeling is…weird."

"Take your time." He faced her and grinned. "I'm all ears."

She gave him a gloomy smile. "I need to be strong, but…the pain from my father dying…it's just too much. He was all that I held dear and now he's gone." She sighed tearfully. "I know that I didn't cause his death, but I…can't help but think that I could have prevented it."

Kaleb took her hand and squeezed it gently. "Everybody thinks that when somebody special to them dies. It took me a long time to find out that it wasn't true."

She looked into his eyes pleadingly. "But how did you survive? How did you come to terms with your pain?"

"I'm still not sure that I have. When my mom died… she told me life was going to get harder, but to never give up. She made me swear to her that I'd never stop trying and would always do my best. I wanted to forget the anguish, but if I forced it out, would I forget about my mom completely too? It was a gift and a curse." He sighed. "As much as I want to, I can't fully answer your question. I don't think I'll ever be able to move on, but when I remember all the good times I had her, even though painful, it's worth it. Just…don't ever forget all the times you and your father shared and know that he's always watching over you."

Bastila's tears started to burst out like an unleashed waterfall. She knew he was right, but it would never be the same. A powerful longing came over Kaleb and he scooted closer and rubbed her hands comfortingly.

"I might not be able to make you feel better, but…I want to help ease your pain. I know that you don't want to feel weak, but let yourself trust me…just for tonight."

She sobbed and lies on his chest as he draped his arms around her and rubbed her back. Bastila once again felt the heartening warmth that flowed from his body. It was right at that moment when she realized that she had missed it noticeably. Her mind was working overtime to clarify all of what she was experiencing, but it was nowhere near her heart. Her body was in an internal battle, as she wanted to run away and yet her only desire was for this to last forever. She lifted her head and her eyes had a mind of their own as they locked to Kaleb's. Even though there was little light, they took it and made a rich shade of honey. What was no surprise to her was the fact that they shined with compassion. He was always so sure of himself and in his actions, he never had to think twice. Unlike herself, he always knew what to do and never seemed to worry about anything. He just took it all and kept going. She suddenly looked away.

_What had he done to her! Every thought was starting to be about him and she worried constantly. _

Kaleb cupped her face and turned it back towards him.

"I have something for you and I would love to see your expression when you see it." He told her softly as he shifted slightly and reached into his pocket to pull out the necklace. "Your mother said that your dad wanted to get a dragon pearl her, so I scrapped it from that krayt dragon that Komad killed. I…wanted to get you something that would remind you of your father just in case you didn't get the holocrom back."

Her eyes widened and she looked at the jewelry in awe. "It's…beautiful. Where did you get this?"

"Iziz owed me a favor. And don't worry, it only cost my entire life savings."

Bastila looked at him in shock while he laughed.

"I'm just playing with you. The price is for me to know and you to forever try to figure out."

"Kaleb, I don't know what to say…"

"You don't have to say anything, but as good as this looks in my hand, I'm sure it'll be even better on your neck."

He came up behind her and secured it around her neck. "There you go. Now turn around so I can see how it looks."

She faced him, held the sphere in her hand, and gasped. "You…inscribed our initials on this too?"

"Well, I had to get in there somewhere." He told her with a soft grin.

Bastila hugged him to show how grateful she was for her present and his concern.

"Thank you."

Kaleb staggered back, astonished and not expecting that reaction from her. He was sure that he was blushing, so he looked at an absolutely fascinating pillow instead of at her.

"Don't mention it, but you do have to be my personal slave for a week."

Bastila laughed, but then saw that she was still holding on to him; there bodies inches apart. She stared at Kaleb, but he quickly looked elsewhere and she smiled knowing that he was embarrassed by what she had done. There was something bothering her…something that had to be decided now.

"Why?" She asked before she lost her nerve.

"Why what?"

"Why…why did you do this for me, Kaleb?"

He shrugged. "Because I wanted to."

"Well…yes there's that, but…is there no other reason?"

His pulse quickened when he realized what she was asking him. He felt that she deserved to know the true reason why he got her the necklace, but…he didn't know if he was ready. Another rejection from her would be too much to bear and it was looming in his head the entire time.

She poked the side of his head teasingly. "What's in there?"

"I would hope a brain, but it has yet to be proven."

"You know what I mean. What are you thinking about?"

"I'm thinking that the necklace looks really good on you and-"

"Kaleb." She stated knowing that he was trying to change the subject.

He sighed heavily and backed away from her. "Come on, this room is depressing."

"Where are you going?"

"**_We're_ **going out for a little while. The suns have set, and it's actually comfortable outside. I'll tell you why I got you the bracelet when we get there."

"Where is there?"

"You'll find out when we go, won't you?"

Kaleb didn't want to seem brash, but to tell her what he was going to say, he had to get out of this room; this ship. She wouldn't forget about her question or her father's death, but maybe he could…distract her until he even knew what he was going to say.

"I'll meet you in the front of the ship, I have to get something first."

She nodded and he left the room to go back to the storage area to get the bottle of wine out of the cooler.

"Who knows? I might be able to break you in after all."

He put it and two glasses in his knapsack and hurried to the front of the ship.

-----------------

"Okay, you're good to go. Here's your permit back." A new guard had told as the enormous black barricade released its locks and opened.

Kaleb grasped Bastila's hand and tugged her gently through the gate as it closed behind them.

"Over here."

He let go of her hand, "Do you have your saber with you?"

"I do, but I don't understand why I should need it."

He removed one of his sabers and held it to his side. "The depression that you have and the agony the you can't get to go away; I want you to take it out on me."

"What?"

"We're going to duel; don't hold back."

"Now you're just being foolish. If we fight without restraint…" She trailed off.

"Your not at the jedi academy anymore, there's only you and me. The whole point of this little game is for you to lose control. Trust me, it will make you feel a whole lot better and I'm not going to hurt you."

"And how do you know if I won't hurt you?"

"Our bond will let us stay one step ahead. None of us will be able to close it because we'll be focused on each other. Also, you like me, remember?" He told her with a smirk.

"No," She said with finality. "You can't manipulate me into doing this."

"Did anyone ever tell you that you talk too much?" He ignited his saber. "When you fight, words are melted away and only true intentions remain. There are also things that you can only express in the heat of battle. For once, your emotions can go wild and nobody will berate you for it." Kaleb settled into an offensive stance. "Arm yourself."

"I am not going to fight you, but I will defend myself if you advance with this childish game."

"Aww, is that what all the jedi say before they kill somebody?" He asked harshly, trying to provoke her. "Your too impetuous to just defend against me the whole time."

"So you're intentionally trying coax me into anger now? It's not going to work."

"I doubt that. I seem to have a knack for pissing you off."

Kaleb leapt at her and she rapidly took out her double lightsaber and powered it. She blocked his attack with little difficulty and used the force to propel him back. He jumped out the way of its direction just in time and grinned cockily.

"I thought you weren't going to attack me?"

"I didn't, I just pushed you away from me. You're not even harmed."

"You knew that I would jump…"

"Now you get it. I'm not doing this with you."

"Then I guess I'm going to have to make you!" He exclaimed as he sprinted towards her.

She rolled her eyes. "You never give up do you?"

Their sabers collided a second time as none bested the other.

Kaleb couldn't shake the distinct feeling that he and Bastila had done this before. The fight was…familiar; too familiar for it only being the first time.

"You're not quite there yet…but your getting closer. Why do you try so hard to please everyone, but yourself? Your father wouldn't have wanted to live like this."

Bastila broke away.

"He has nothing to do with this and my decisions are my own!"

"Clearly there yours, _Bas_, because anybody else would've seen how stupid they are."

He charged at her again and barraged her with a flurry of relentless hits.

"You fear every little thing you do! I'm sure that you wouldn't use a bathroom stall if you thought it would turn you evil!"

Each hit was nullified by her saber as she parried. "A Jedi must constantly be wary of the dark side!"

"Yeah, I know; dark side _bad_!"

She narrowed her eyes and again used force to repel him, knowing that he would avoid it easily.

Kaleb smirked and lowered his saber, allowing the attack to hit him head on. His body was hurled back several feet in the air and grunted as he slid across the sandy ground. Bastila deactivated her saber and ran over to him, alarmed by what he allowed her to do.

She saw that his eyes were closed and he wasn't moving.

"Kaleb!"

_Was that attack to hard? I didn't mean to knock him unconscious! _

A hand wrapped around her knee and pulled her down into the sand. She was caught off guard and landed on the ground with a thump. When Bastila looked around to see who had assaulted her, she only spotted Kaleb beaming and…_standing up? _

"You should have seen face! You looked like you were going to wet yourself when you thought I was hurt! I was thinking about acting a little longer to see if you would!"

He started laughing so hard that he had to hold his stomach to stop it from hurting. "Now I don't know about you, but I feel a lot better-"

Bastila had pushed him forcefully into the sand. "I should kill you right now! How dare you play with my emotions, and make me think that you were injured!"

Bastila picked up her saber and walked away angrily, but Kaleb got up, spit some sand out of his mouth irritably, and tackled her onto a medium sized dune.

"_Tag_…" He told her hoarsely, got up slowly, and sniffed. "You're it."

As he walked away again, she stuck her leg out and tripped him.

"_Right_…back at you." She told him victoriously, taking up his challenge.

"If I have to taste this sand _one more time_!" He yelled as he flipped over and forced her down with his weight.

Kaleb leaned forward, a small space between them. "Bas, are you as turned on as I am?" He whispered huskily.

She struggled to push him off, but he held her hands. She smirked mischievously when she found out her feet remained free, and kicked him in the groin.

He wheezed. _"Anywhere, but there!" _

Her plan backfired, however, because he fell off her too quickly and pulled on her robe; bringing her down with him on their tumble. The two rolled along the dune with a billow of sand all around them, until they landed at the bottom.

He started coughing, but managed to sputter, "You _kicked _me in the _groin_!"

Bastila gave him a look that said "your point being?", stood up, and started brushing herself off. "Yes, I'm aware of that."

"You could have just told me to get off of you!"

"And if you hadn't restrained my hands, I wouldn't have had to use my legs."

Kaleb looked at her face and saw that she was trying to hold back a smile.

"It's not funny! When my children come out retarded, I'm going to blame you!"

"Oh, suck it up. You're supposed to be a man."

"We can only hope that I still am after _that _hit!"

She kicked sand on his chest playfully. "Shut-up. It wasn't even that hard."

He turned his head toward her and grinned. "I don't know, Bastila, you're starting to become abusive."

"Well you're the only one to blame! You make me want to pull out my hair sometimes!"

"All I'm saying, is if you see a bloody pulp on the ground, please don't poke it."

She laughed. "I hate you so much, do you know that?"

He gave her a fake regretful look. "I sorry, let me make it up to you." He jogged over to his knapsack and took out the wine. "Have a drink with me."

"Oh, now you're just showing off."

"It's what I do." The glasses rose out of the bag themselves and stayed in the air. "And I do it **_so_** well."

Bastila sat down as Kaleb unwrapped the bottle and popped the cork. A fuzzy stream of wine erupted out of it, but stopped as soon as it began.

A glass floated to him and he started to pour. "Say when."

The red wine filled the cup less then half the glass, "When."

He chuckled and levitated the glass to her.

"Thank you."

"Welcome." He told her as he filled his glass, re-plugged the wine, and put it back in his knapsack.

He then sat down next to her, swished his drink around, and smelled it. "Hmm…yes…indeed." He said in a mock accent and then took a sip.

He saw her looking at her glass distantly.

"Uh, somebody told me that it's even better if you drink it, Bas."

"Sorry. I guess I'm just not used to drinking wine."

"They didn't let you drink at the academy?"

"In moderation. If you drank too much it could demerit your natural defenses. You could think how well that would go when you have a hangover and still have training in the morning."

He chuckled. "It sounds like you've been through that before."

Bastila's lip curled into a little smile. "Damn you and your observant nature!"

"I did take Observance 101, so you're going to have to live with it. What happened?"

"I snuck out at night with a friend, to go out to this late party."

"_You_? _Snuck out_?" Kaleb asked skeptically. "_To a party_!"

"I was a teenager, and everyone goes through that…subversive phase."

"_Aww_…puberty Bastila. Collect them all."

"You done?"

"Yeah, I'm done now."

"So, like I said, we went to the party and they had drinks. Everybody was having such a good time so we played a game of truth or dare."

"Ok, that's were I draw the line!" Kaleb told her with his hand up. "I'll accept kissing, or groping, even spin the lightsaber! But when you play _truth or dare_-you're out of control!"

She rolled her eyes. "I was feeling brave, so I chose dare. That had to be one of the stupidest things I've ever done."

"That bad, huh?"

"I was dared to drink half a bottle of ale. Of course, I couldn't say no or I'd look like a coward, so…"

"You did it?"  
"Yes. I threw up seconds later and my friend had to take me back to the Academy. The next day, I woke up with the _worst_ headache in the galaxy and had to go through all my classes with it; so my Master didn't think I went out."

Kaleb laughed. "I bet that was fun."

"You have no idea."

"Well, luckily, you're with me; so you don't need any natural defenses." He downed his glass in a single gulp. "Ahh…at least until I get really drunk, then all bets are off."

She took a taste to show that she appreciated the gesture. "It's very good."

"I'm glad because that was the best wine they had in the place."

Bastila bit her lip in apprehension. "I've…I've been trying to find a way to say something to you for a long time, but I guess the best thing to do is just come out and say it."

Kaleb stared at her intently, knowing that whatever she was going to say was of great importance. She was a lot of things, but hesitant was not one of them.

"We've been together for a while now and, truth be told, I've come to depend on you. And not just for the sake of the mission, but for my own sake as well. I am…glad that you are with us…with me."

He started to tap both of his ears. "Either I'm going deaf, or you just gave _me _a compliment. You should say it again just so I can be sure."

"Now you're teasing me. You know very well what I said."

"I'm just now rebounding from the shock. Did you just say something nice to me?"

"I did. Surely it's not so surprising?"

He laughed, but discontinued abruptly when he saw the look on her face. "You…um…weren't kidding were you?"

"No I was not. Why do you have to make this so difficult for me? Can you not accept a simple compliment without turning it into an accusation?"

"Well, maybe I wouldn't have turned it into an accusation if you didn't give my "compliment" so grudgingly. You sounded like you were pained when you said it."

Bastila winced from his words. "I see…"

He sighed and gave her an apologetic look. "Bas…you know I didn't mean it like that."

"No, I'm the one who didn't mean what I said. Is there nothing I can do to make it up to you? I would rather we'd be friends."

Kaleb raised an eyebrow. "Oh, there's millions of things that you could do to make it up to me, but we'd have to be _way_ closer than friends to do them."

She felt a heaviness in her chest. "I…you know that I can't feel about you in that way. About any man." She added to show that it just wasn't him. "It isn't permitted. I am a Jedi and I must resist these temptations."

She looked at him and saw that he was staring out at the desert. The look on his face was an enigma. It was like a holographic card, switching from one emotion to the other, when you really wanted to see the real image.

"I know my manner can be a bit taciturn. I know you have to be getting sick of my lectures of the dark side…and everything else."

He still did not respond and the heaviness in her chest got even worst from his silence.

"I spent all years being hounded by my instructors. Being told so often how gifted and important I was until I was sick of it. When I was younger, I used to swear to myself that I would never become as self-absorbed and stodgy as the Jedi Masters. It's ironic, really."

"You might be like that, but you don't have to." Kaleb said finally talking, but still not looking at her.

"I…suppose not, but I am becoming like that. It's not an easy thing to admit."

"Then don't and it can't become true."

Bastila sighed sadly. "If only it were that easy. Being controlled has kept everyone around me at an arm's length; even those who are like you who are most in need of my understanding and compassion. But maybe it's time to change all that. You deserve to know how much I respect and admire you. I…needed to tell you how much I cared for you-as a friend of course."

He finally looked at her again and his face was neutral, but the intensity in his eyes was…unnatural.

"So you respect and admire me? You think I am in most need of your understanding and compassion, and yet you can never fully give me those things?"

Her words seemed to lump in her throat. "Kaleb…you can only be considered as a friend. We can't…we can't be anything more than that…it isn't allowed…"

"And what we've done already is?" He asked her in irritation. "We're were just sitting here drinking wine, Bastila. Does it get any more obvious than that?"

"Please…" She pretty much pleaded for more her stability than his. "It not allowed."

"Can we get just one thing straight?" He grabbed some sand and let it run through his fingers. "Am I not…" He balled his hand into a fist. "Good enough for you?"

"No!" She told him quickly. "I just…I have to remain true to the Jedi ideal. If…this is going to become a problem…maybe…I shouldn't have said anything."

"Your right," He told her coldly. "You shouldn't have. I'd rather have some since of hope than just have it crushed over and over again." He threw the grains that he had in his hand down at the ground in frustration. "This "jedi ideal" that you cling to, why do you have to refuse me to stay true to it! What scares the jedi so much about emotional attachments!"

"The emotion itself!" She argued, upset that he was only thinking of himself and not considering how hard this was for her. "It can only lead to complications and conflict, and we need neither to be able to defeat Malak!"

"The only complications and conflict we have is about this, so if it's accepted, then won't it go away?"

"If it is accepted, things will only get worse!"

Kaleb got up on his knees, moved behind Bastila, and wrapped his arms around her stomach. She gasped softly as his touch sent chills up her spine.

"Does this feel anywhere near worse to you?" He whispered into her ear.

She cursed herself for not being able to resist him.

"We can't-"

"You wanted to know why I got you that necklace right?"

All she could do was nod.

"I wanted to get it…" He paused, not being able to get his words out the way he wanted. "I got it because…it was for…dammit!" He exhaled slowly, excruciatingly. "The words are in my head, but… I know it's going to sound corny when I say it."

It couldn't be possible for her not to smile at his comment. She had never seen him so unguarded and without a snappy retort or comeback at hand.

She placed her hand over his for support. "Corny is good. It's…truthful."

"I…got you the necklace because I felt…obligated to make you feel better. I couldn't stand the fact that you felt so…devastated. Our bond let me feel what you did and it was…vile. It…was like a distraught animal had finally been let lose and just shattered…everything. An open and clawed wound in our bond." He ran his hand over his stubbly hair. "As to what I was thinking about back on the ship, I was wondering about me…concerning you. I don't care about jedi ideals, you know that better than anyone, but…if you only consider me as a friend and are incapable of feeling anything for me…" He removed his arms and she automatically shivered. "Then I shouldn't be holding you."

Kaleb was about to get up, but she turned around and laid her head on his shoulder; unshed tears at the corner of her eyes.

"I…I'm so confused, but…please…don't go."

"I wasn't going to leave, I was just going to sit beside you again." He smiled at her sentimentally and smoothed her hair back.

Bastila didn't want him to let go of her or to hurt him, and these…feelings he enthused up in her and his constant flirtations were having an effect. She was a dominant person, who knew what she had to do, but for her to not be able regulate her actions toward him…it was frightening. His affections were starting to influence her…and she didn't want to fight it. No time could be afforded to being smitten because of their mission and…his situation, but whatever was guiding her toward him, obviously didn't care about her agenda. She had to know exactly what Kaleb felt for her. He hinted around the subject or avoided it with humor, but never came straight out with an answer; and her mind wouldn't rest until she knew.

Bastila closed her eyes. "Kaleb…what is this? What are we doing?" She had tried to make it sound as apathetic as possible, but knew that he would catch the anxiety she felt.

Here it was. The question he had been dreading and waiting for at the same time. Of course he cared for her and wasn't ashamed to say it, the jedi and sith titles held no power over him, but…what about her well-being? He was strong enough to denounce what others said, he couldn't care less about what they thought, but…would she be able to let go of her entire way of living for him? Being a jedi was Bastila's life; everything she valued and confided in. Could he compete with that? And more importantly, should he force her to give it up in the first place? She already had so much pressure upon herself to defeat Malak and to train him at the same time; especially when he distracted her with his infantile admittance game. Even through his bias desire, he saw that it was wrong. He wanted her, but not if she didn't come willingly and without regrets. And no matter how much it hurt him inside, he had to think of her welfare first.

Bastila nudged her head up his shoulder, breaching his musings and silently pushing him to the conclusion that she wanted.

"Bas…Bastila." Kaleb glanced at her and used a thin smile to cover his true feelings like make-up to cover a blemish. "You're right. We should…only be friends."

She lifted her head off of him and peered into his golden eyes. She saw a wavering determination…a hidden ache and…his smile also looked out of place on his face. She must have noticed her expression because he turned away and yawned.

"Whew! I'm pooped!" Kaleb exclaimed as he cracked his neck. "We should get back to the ship, the suns look like they might be coming up soon and I personally don't want to face that kind of heat for another day."

He squatted, took her hand, and tenderly pulled her up with him. Bastila stared at him for a moment.

"Kaleb?"

He gave her a bright smile. "Yeah?"

"Um…never mind."

He shrugged, emptied the glasses of their wine, grabbed the bottle itself, and put them all into his knapsack.

"You ready?"

She faced him slowly and nodded.

"Great, let's go."

---------------

Bastila was too tired to take a shower and went straight to her room. She was, she thought…dissatisfied; and yet, she didn't know why. Kaleb had given the response that was allowed-that was needed, but the way that it was given troubled her. He seemed so…wounded by what he said, but refused to show any signs of it. Bastila put her pointer and index fingers on her temple. So then why was she arguing with his decision!

_Oh, come now, _An inner voice told her. _Don't be so immature. You should even know that you like this man. _

_I…_She trailed off.

The voice…she was right. Feelings had developed without her knowing, but now she had to confront them…and overcome them. She shouldn't deceive herself into thinking that a relationship with him would work, but…he was caring and tried to help her whenever she had a problem. But the true issue was; how could she know if he was like that for certain? His end of the bond was always blocked, so nothing was known except what was taken at face value and the identity crisis he suffered through. She knew that Kaleb put up a front to make others think that nothing was wrong. He also acted so laid back and strained to keep all the others in a good mood…especially her. Bastila felt that her head was becoming warm from the migraine that was torturing her and turned the light off. She would solve her dilemma, but not tonight; so she bundled up in her covers and dropped on her pillow to inviting sleep.

--------------

Carth looked at Kaleb in surprise when he entered their bedroom from all the sand that he had collected. "So I'm guessing that the two of you had a good time?"

"You're still up?" He asked as he removed his robe and tossed on the floor.

"Couldn't sleep. I decided to review the course we're taking to Mannan."

The younger man smirked. "Whatever. I bet that you're just still too excited from talking to that woman."

He chuckled. "That was an…interesting conversation to say the least, but it just so happened that she had a boyfriend. Said boyfriend tried to kill me for "making moves on his girl" and, of course, I tried to tell him it was all a mistake. Short version, he didn't listen."

Kaleb laughed. "Well, it seems like you've had a fun filled night."

"Let's hope yours was just as entertaining."

"Yeah, I got her a necklace, we play fought, and drunk that wine I bought. You know, all the stuff friends do."

Carth was confused by what he meant as "You know, all the stuff friends do", but didn't want to press it. "When did you get her a necklace?"

"Iziz made it for me. Returned the favor we did for him." He slumped on his bed; his eyes drooped with exhaustion from the day's events and his own personal demons. "Not to be snappy or anything, Carth, but can we do this some other time? I'm in no condition for an interview and I just want to go to sleep."

He nodded understandingly. "You should get some sleep anyway, you look like you've been run over by a starcrusier." Carth picked up some papers and got up. "Since everybody's on the ship, I'm going to go ahead and plug in this route."

Kaleb nodded his head to show that he had heard him and as soon as he left the room, he collapsed onto the mattress.

THE END 

Wow, this was an interesting one, huh? Lot's of things going on and nobody seems to understand them or just refuses to. Anyway about that retarded comment, I didn't mean offense to anyone. But just in case somebody was appalled, my sincerest apologies. Also the next chapter is going to be a long wait because I haven't even begun to write it yet, but I'll get it in as soon as it's finished. Hope you enjoyed and review!


	9. Malfunctions

I'm baaaack! Did ya'll miss me? Crickets chirping …don't everybody speak up at once…

Whew, I'm sorry guys. I hadn't really noticed how long it's really been, but I went into this kind of depression from getting only one review on my last chap. I was really thinking, gosh was it that bad? Luckily, the person who reviewed (My muse or…something lol I actually have something in this chap. that you've wrote to me, so thanks for the inspiration for it!) me assured me that this was a great story, so that really boosted the ol' self-esteem! I definitely have to thank them again because without that vote of confidence I really was considering not writing any more of the story because I thought it was that horrible.

But anyway, enough with the guilt trips! We're on romantic Manaan! (Arms waving wildly in the air) Alright! Yeah! Yeah! Whoooooo! (Serious Face) Right…

I've been waiting too long to get on this planet, and stuff's gonna go down concerning Kaleb's and Bastila's relationship! All I'm going to say though is that there are going to be drastic changes in both of their personalities. Gots to love that! Oh and also, there's this really funny moment between them when they're meditating that I really like. (A little too much…I've got a nasty mind people. Don't mind me)

Oh yeah, little note. I made up this majorly foreshadowing song that plays on a radio, but don't worry-it's actually good. Well…at least I hope it is, that's really your decision. Uh…yeah…well…I have a beat for it, but it would take too long to explain so just make up your own beat. A little hint though, it's medium paced. Think…slow R&B. Contradictive; I know but just work with it! Alright, read on!

Chapter 9 

"_We'll follow loyally by your decision, Revan. Whatever it may be, we'll stand by and obey only you." _

Kaleb was surprised when he could see Malak and Revan talking on a cliff clearly, although Malak was the only one that was visible since Revan was turned around. Even though he couldn't see his face, he did notice that Revan had light brown hair with streaks of blond. It was medium length and tied up into a short braid.

Revan shifted his weight to his right leg. _"I know that what you have said is true, Malak, but I don't want to drag all of you into my priorities. I have killed Mandalore, but the war will never truly be over if more of his followers are still out there. If they are even allowed to join up…" _His remark trailed.

It was the first time Kaleb had truly heard his voice without any distortion. It was so detached and yet, still had a sense of authority. It was also familiar to Kaleb, but he wasn't sure why.

"_Then hundreds-even thousands more could be killed." _His friend concluded.

"_Yes…I cannot let that happen again. Every single Mandalorian needs to be hunted down. Also there is another threat. I have heard tales of the Mandalorians seeking an ancient but extremely powerful Star Forge. It must be destroyed because of this; it is too vital to them and will also tempt other greedy and hateful eyes toward it." _

"_But, Revan…what about the Order? Couldn't we go back and warn them of this? They would surely listen to us after all that has happened, right?" _

"_Did they accept our petitioning for help against this war? No," _He told him answering his own question. _"They would be too busy meditating to help us." _He said, almost bitterly, but then stopped himself and calmed down. _"Already, this…dark…**thing** is crawling and festering inside. Not only am I a threat to myself now, but I will hamper and endanger others as well." _Revan paused. _"My friend…I cannot return to the Order…there can be no going back for me." _Malak was silent, but he continued. _"I don't expect you to come with me or…anyone else, but this is something I must do alone." _

Malak shook his head. _"Don't be foolish, Revan. Whatever you will go through, I will follow you into till the end and I am positive that others will do the same." _

"_I am grateful for your adherence, but if you accompany me…I will not be able to redeem you from what is debasing me. You must understand that once you set down this road, there will be no turning back." _

"_I know the risks and we will defeat them like everyone and everything else." _

Revan looked like he was about to turn around, but the vision clouded into black and cleared up again. Revan was seen, but this time, he was by himself. He didn't have on his helmet, but infuriatingly, his head was buried in his hands.

_What am I going to do? It was hard enough to abandon all tenets of the Order and still try to do the right thing…it wasn't possible. But maybe…I could try to regain the light that the Force had forsaken me from. Regain it through the slow and tedious struggle of inner peace or…save everyone from his or her blindness and take the plunge. Abandon futile teachings and rectify this society into one that didn't have to dread emotions. If true order was to be found though, there could be no holding back-it was either all or nothing. I…know that to have truth in it, but to lead others to this conclusion when they couldn't understand…I shouldn't have that sort of influence on people's lives. This should have been an easy decision; I am a tactician and the odds are in my favor. But I'm computing methods that are currently unknown and the place he was going to was anonymity. It was becoming increasingly apparent that no plans could be made. It's too late… _

Revan stood up from the chair, his hands still covering his face, and went over to his dresser. He had put his hand on a pair of metallic scissors and grasped it firmly. He had lifted the scissors to the back of his head with one hand and placed his braid in the shears. The man paused for a second, as if wondering about what he was about to do, but just shook his head and gripped the tool. The lowly braid fell silently to the floor as Revan kept cutting his hair.

_------------------------------------- _

Kaleb woke up suddenly, panting and in a cold sweat. He felt cold when the vision ended, like darkness had encompassed him.

His eyes widened. _The vision…I heard Revan's thoughts somehow, but how could that be possible? _

Kaleb saw that his covers were tossed haphazardly around his torso. He looked around discovered that the other beds were empty. The young man rose, throwing the covers to the ground, and quickly headed over to the 'fresher. He quickly turned on the light. Those words…those thoughts raced through his head.

"No plans could be made, it's too late…" He recited as he looked in the mirror. "It was so final and yet, the beginning of a revelation also."

Kaleb turned a faucet and splashed some cold water on his face.

_Revan just wanted to protect the Republic so it wouldn't collapse upon itself. He believed it to be like a helpless child that obtained some sort of power, but didn't know how to use it. And like a mother, Revan would have to demolish their policies and build strict new ones. For this though, he had to fall. He had to turn away from what he thought was wrong or he would forever be controlled by it. _

Kaleb rinsed his face with water again, but staggered back when he examined his reflection in the mirror. His eyes, he was sure, had transformed into sickly pale mustard. He abruptly turned away from the image, cupped some more of the cold liquid in his hands, and plunged his face into it. He repeated the process again before grabbing a towel. Kaleb wiped his face off and checked the mirror. His eyes, and everything else for that matter, were the same…normal as they ever were.

He tried to regulate his breathing. _What the hell is happening to me? My eyes…they were just yellow…right? I-It could have been a hallucination-his mind playing tricks on him from being so deprived of sleep. _He closed his eyes and took a deep breath in an attempt to clear his head, but the one thought that wouldn't go away kept badgering him.

_My eyes looked like that after I was thinking about Revan… _He opened his eyes. _I'm…connected to him somehow. There's no other explanation…it had to be the reason why he had all of his memories. I need to find more out more about Revan. The council only told me when he went to war and how he was so headstrong. And Bastila…even if I could bring myself to talk to her, she would probably say more of the same. No, I needed an un-bias opinion. _

As Kaleb opened the door and turned off the 'fresher light, his mind wandered to the second vision he had again. He had felt Revan's emptiness, his hopeless plunge into desperation. But really, why would he want to return to a world that did not-could not comprehend. It was dreams of grandeur if Revan thought he had a choice in the matter after he had been in that war. Kaleb had stopped in front of Bastila's door without realizing it.

He chuckled softly. _Even my feet betray me. _

It couldn't be denied that he had a strong urge to wake her up, but…after what had happened that night on Tatooine. Kaleb shook his head. He knew he needed to learn how to not confide in her so much or at least in a non-personal way.

"Pretty much," He said to himself as he made his way to the workshop room. "I need to unlike her."

Of course, this was going to be easier said then done, but hey, it would just be another challenge that he needed to overcome. How difficult could being just friends be?

"Hey, Canderous!" Kaleb exclaimed as he saw who was seeking out.

The Mandalorian didn't even lift his head from the project he was working on. "Yeah? What do you want?"

"Oh, just wanted to ask a question since I knew you'd be here. It's no surprise that you're up so late or is it early?"

"Doesn't matter either way to me. This is the only fun thing I got going on this ship."

"Yeah. You gotta get a hobby fast or you'll die of boredom." He smiled. "Speaking of boredom, why don't you help me fight it and tell me what you know about Revan?"

He snorted. "I'm sure that Jedi princess of yours could talk your ear off about him. Much more than you'll get out of me."

"Actually, it's the complete opposite. She's as closed-lip as everybody else is on the subject, maybe even more."

Canderous put down his tools and looked at him. "Yeah, that would be near impossible to get from a Jedi. Hmm…I think I'll tell you my version of the war were the Jedi Revan beat my people."

"Well, I know a lot about that, since I was there, but I'm always up for a little history class."

"We started by conquering worlds outside the Republic. We did it quietly so the Republic wouldn't really know what was going on until it was too late."

Kaleb rubbed his chin contemplatively. "A wise move, but you know this."

The Mandalorian smirked. "We came in through three invasion corridors in adjacent sectors. Anyone who put up a fight-or wouldn't fight was crushed. We razed whole planets, trying to provoke the Republic into fighting us. I don't particularly like wiping out worlds for its own sake, but the cowardly tactics that those Republic dogs used left us little choice."

"Cowardly tactics, maybe, but not having any choice?" Kaleb said crossly. "There's always a choice. I was out there witnessing countless destruction on those planets, seeing innumerable amounts of innocents die."

"They made the choice not to fight." He told Kaleb gruffly. "We meet the enemy wherever they are hiding and wipe them out. A few cities are a small price to pay for a world."

"A choice not to fight?" The young man asked him while he looked at the Mandalorian as if he were insane. "What kind imprudent excuse is that? Would you not defend yourselves if we had attacked your planet?"

"Defending yourself is a whole different story, but the tactics those _dogs _used. Cowering in civilian houses, using families as shields. Thinking we would not use appropriate action to seize control inside major cities."

"I never said that I agreed with the Republic's methods, but senseless killing is a price none should have to afford."

Canderous scoffed. "They knew our resolve and what measures were acceptable in the war. Those who cannot fight or protect themselves should not be around those who can in battle."

"But even you said earlier that you would have hunted them down anyway. You can say that the tremendous forces you used were necessary as a crutch, but somewhere deep inside, you know that it's true."

"I have no time for weaklings or cowards!" Canderous spat at him. "They all should be rounded up and exterminated like vermin!"

"Cowardly because they are afraid to die?" Kaleb shook his head. "Then I guess we're all vermin in your eyes."

"The only thing that I regret was that there was no honor in the task. We wiped them out like the pathetic rats they are." He scoffed. "Only one of your forces did redeem the Republic in our eyes."

"I wonder…could it have been Revan?" Kaleb asked sarcastically.

The Mandalorian nodded. "Yes, you're Jedi Revan. He was a genius on the battlefield and an ingenious tactician. They say they say that he knew what his enemies before they did." He grinned. "Revan was the only one who could defeat the best of us. Even Mandalore himself was taken aback by the ferocity, the tenacity, and the subtlety of Revan's plans. He fought us to a standstill and then began pushing back. We didn't really have a chance." Canderous sighed and rubbed his forehead of sweat. "I don't hold a grudge against Revan, and neither do my people. It was the greatest moment of my life to be apart of that battle. That's all I have to say about Revan; is there something else you want to know?"

"Nope, nothing more for now. Thanks."

Canderous shrugged and went back to working on his project.

------------------------------------

_Well, even though that was interesting, _Kaleb mused while he was in a chair in the meeting room. _Canderous just told me the same thing everybody else has. Revan was a brilliant strategist, blah blah blah. He led the Republic to victory, blah blah blah. _

He ran his hand over his stubble hair and groaned. _I guess I'm still irritable about the whole Bastila ordeal. _

No matter how hard he tried to forget, it never worked. Could he be just another member of this crew and an ally on this mission to her? He would have to distance himself from her, dampen their bond so no further feelings could be developed.

Carth yawned loudly as he exited from the cockpit. "What? Kaleb?" He asked groggily. "It's about fifteen standard hours before we arrive on Manaan, if that's what you're up for."

"No, that's not why I'm up; but thanks for the update."

The pilot yawned again, but sat down across from him. "So then why exactly are you up?"

Kaleb smiled. "I'm just too damn restless. I can't wait to get off this ship."

Carth smiled back at him. "That had to be one of the best lies I've ever heard, but your face is giving you away, man. What's up?"

The younger man sighed. "It's just that…life has a bad habit of getting in my way."

The pilot chuckled. "If that isn't the truth for everyone, then I don't know what is."

Kaleb gave him an apologetic look. "I shouldn't have said it like that. I know I'm not the only one who's been going through tough times."

"It's alright. Sometimes you need to worry about yourself once in a while."

He nodded, but sorely wanted to change the subject. "Hey, Carth? Why do you exude so much hate for Saul?"

"I can't really bring myself to like someone who betrayed us all, so excuse me."

"Well, no, I didn't mean it like that. I meant your detesting of him is so…absolute. You would think that the motive would be a more personal attack and you want revenge on him so badly. "

Carth sighed deeply and enclosed his fingers together. "You're right…there is more to it. I'm sure you don't want to hear about it though."

"Sure I would. I asked didn't I?"

Carth must have taken Kaleb's words harder then he thought he would from the expression on his face.

"It's just that I…don't talk about it much, ok?"

"I'm didn't mean to sound harsh, Carth, I'm just having a bad day. Take your time."

"I told you about my homeworld, Telos. Four years ago, Saul led the Sith fleet there and demanded its surrender. The planet refused and Saul proceeded to devastate its entire surface. Millions died." He rested his arm on the table and laid his hand on his wrinkled forehead. "I…had a wife and a son on Telos, I thought they would be safe there. But…my task force arrived too late to be of much help. We didn't have enough medical supplies. The colony was burning…and dying was everywhere. I remember…holding my wife and screaming for the medics. They…didn't come in time." The pilot finished in a low voice with his eyes downcast on the table.

"Oh wow…that's…I'm sorry, Carth. I didn't…I didn't know."

"Of course not. How could you? I…had nothing left after that, really. I devoted myself to the fleet. Hunting Saul was my only purpose." He looked up again. "I miss them…and I know killing him won't bring them back or make me happy again…but I have to do it."

Kaleb nodded. "I understand because I'd probably do the same thing in your situation. If someone took away someone I cared for…" He automatically thought of Bastila, but dismissed the thought as soon as it came. "I don't know what I would do. I could never judge when I haven't gone through it myself."

"I have to pay him back for what he's done…I have to. It's all I have left."

"So this is were all the hatred stems from, huh?"

"Yeah. I can't forgive Saul for this. He took everything away from me, even…even my trust. I hope you can understand that."

"If I knew you went through all of that…I didn't mean to pry."

"No, it's ok. I didn't mind. You deserved some kind of…explanation for my behavior."

"Uh…what was your wife like?"

"She had courage and…she was stubborn." Carth chuckled. "I could never talk her out of anything once she put her mind to it. And she hated it when I signed back onto the fleet at the start of the war."

"How could you blame her? You should never let a person that you love go into something where they could die at any minute."

"I had planned on…leaving soon, to join her…"

Kaleb knew that it pained him too much to finish his sentence. "So what happened to your son? You didn't say."

"His name was Dustil and I don't know what happened to him. The colony was in complete ruin, and we never found any trace of him. I made inquires and followed the reports from Telos for years, but…I stopped. But, anyway…I hope that answers your questions."

"They did. I'm still sorry for being nosy. Your business is your business only."

"It's alright, really." The pilot grinned. "So I did my soul searching session; you're turn."

Kaleb leaned back into his chair and closed his eyes. "It's just that these visions I keep having…they're starting to take a toll on me. I'm just so immensely exhausted by them all, that it feels like my mind is…slowing down and burning out to the point of being virtually useless."

Carth was taken aback from the intensity of his friend's description. "That's sorta dramatic, isn't it?"

He opened his eyes. "I wish I were using theatrics or that I was exaggerating. They haunt me…never going away or ceasing and I don't know why." He said in frustration as his hands clenched.

"Why haven't you told anyone about this?"

"No offense, but none of you would be able to understand."

"Well, probably, but what about Bastila? The two of you have that bond, so she should be able to help you out if anyone can; right?"

_Why did he have to say her of all people? _Kaleb sighed. "She…I'm sure that she tries her best, but all she can say is grin and bear it or meditate. I'm not saying that she doesn't care," He added quickly. "It's just that she's…Bastila has no idea how I feel…the dejection that accompanies me…and yet she is certain that she does. I know that she's only attempting to help, but…there's just no way that she could aid me against something she can't experience herself."

Carth nodded. "That makes sense."

"It's not her though, I'm just fed up with the…total desolation and despondency of my circumstance. I can't control these visions or stop them either, and it doesn't help that most of them are about Revan." Kaleb rubbed his forehead wearily. "Bits and pieces of his memories are invading my sanity and making me feel like my head is splitting open."

"Wow…I don't know what to say, besides I'm sorry. I didn't know that you went through anything like that."

"Don't feel bad. I purposely don't like to lay my troubles on others because I prefer depending on myself. I just…hope after we find this Star Forge, I can just…get away from all this."

"You're not going to go back to the Jedi?"

"Nope. There's no place for me there. I'd just cause untold destruction and trouble." The young man laughed. "They're probably going to hunt me down or something, but hey, that can be the excitement in my life that I'd die without."

Carth scoffed. "You're either an absolute genius or the craziest idiot I've ever known."

"Oh, you didn't know? I'm both, but I'm pretty sure I'm more of the latter than the former." Kaleb got up and stretched. "Well…" He groaned from the pulling of his ligaments. "The talking thing was fun and all, but I'm going to take a shower. I'm in long due of one and I don't have anything else to do since I can't sleep."

"Right." The pilot yawned again. "Luckily, I don't have that problem. I've been sleeping on that chair in the cockpit and it really messed up my back, so I think I'll sleep in my bunk."

"Nobody likes a bragger, Carth."

"Try some tea. That always knocks me out." Carth advised as he retreated the room.

"And you would pick the one thing that I hate with passion. Tea is so…blech for no reason!"

The older man laughed as she went through the hallway.

"Well since you find that so funny, I know you'll be happy to know that I've borrowed some of your clothes. Thanks, buddy!"

"Hey…What?" Carth asked back.

"Sorry, can't hear you! The water is drowning you out!"

------------------------------

Kaleb put his hands against the wet metallic walls as the water sprayed over his back. He groaned and turned the warm water off.

"I give up-you win mission. It's overwhelmingly apparent that I have no life now."

He stepped put of the stall, grabbed a new towel out of a bin, and began to wipe himself off. When he was satisfied that he was completely dried off, he pulled on some clean olive green underwear, loose dark blue pants, and a white beater.

"Even if Carth doesn't know, he won't mind if I bother them for a while."

He was sick of wearing robes all the time, so he…"Acquired"…some normal clothes to wear.

Kaleb rubbed his chin and felt that it was getting rugged. "It's time for a shave, huh?"

He opened the medicine cabinet and took out a razor and some shaving cream.

He glanced at the mirror and grinned. "Urgent breakthrough! I must choose between having a strip or going clean!" He shook his head and chuckled. "That was so serious."

Kaleb picked up the can of shaving cream and administered some in his hand. He smeared some on his face to create a ridiculous mustache.

"How could I forget about the mustache?" He smiled. "Qui, qui. I am Sean Paul." He said in a phony French accent. "All ze ladies love me because I am, what you call…zensitive about feelingz." He laughed and put some more cream around his face to create a beard. "The girls done love the beard. Drives 'em all kinds of plum crazy." Kaleb said to his refection in a thick country accent as he pretended to groom it. "_The beard _makes _the man_."

"Are you having fun?" An amused feminine voice asked.

"Yeah, I-" Kaleb slowly turned around, with widened eyes, hoping to everything that it wasn't who he thought it was. His prayers were unanswered as he saw a smiling Bastila standing across from him.

He exhaled slowly. _Alright…just act normal and be friendly. _"How…long have you exactly been standing there?"

"Oh, I came in at the part "Ze ladies love you because you are zensitive about feelingz."

"And you didn't say anything, why now?"

"You looked like you were having such a great time. Who am I to stop you?"

Kaleb wiped off the extra shaving cream in embarrassment and washed it down the sink. "I was just seeing…what style I wanted to go for."

She nodded. "Yes, I saw."

He decided to just stay silent and shave before he made it worse. He took the razor and made a clean strip down the side of his cheek.

"I didn't think that anyone would still be awake. What are you doing up?" She told him as she moved closer to the room, but squinted from the refresher's lights.

"I couldn't sleep." Kaleb told her simply. He decided to end his comments as soon as possible. The quicker he ended his statements with her, the less he would have to think about anything else.

"Well yes, I got that part, but what woke you up?"

"Nothing serious." He told her vaguely. He didn't feel like reviewing the vision he had again and couldn't tell her about the other thing that was keeping him up…

Bastila let out an agitated scoff. "Do you always have to act like you're so tough?"

Kaleb swept down another strip. "Act?"

"Yes, act. Is it part of some man code to not fully express their troubles?"

"Actually, I think it's in paragraph four, subsection B." He replied as he rinsed the razor off.

Bastila was surprised. His comment wasn't sarcastic or filled with humor as usual, but just…deadpan. Kaleb was, she thought, for the first time being…distant. She knew he was lying to her to end their conversation as rapidly as it could and she felt…wounded by this?

"Bastila?" Kaleb called out, causing her to look up at him.

"What is it?" She asked probably more desperately than she wanted, but she couldn't shake the hope that he would once again tell her what was wrong.

"I wanted to know about that force power I used back on Tatooine on those Sands."

"Oh…" She replied, slightly disappointed. "It's called Force choke. It is a dark side power that cuts off the air circulation and makes the victim die slow and painfully."

"So it's suffocation…" He said more to himself than her. "…That's different."

Another strained silence went between them.

_Is this how it would be with them just being friends? _Bastila thought as she glanced at him still shaving. _Avoiding questions and awkward pauses? It could be better than this…right? _

"Um…Kaleb?"

"Uh-huh?" He asked as he carefully shaved at his chin.

"I wanted to know…" She hesitated. _Come on! You want to ask him how he feels, so do it! No more lies! _

"What's up?" Kaleb added to break her pause.

"I…" She couldn't do it. "Wanted to know where you…got that tattoo."

He looked at his left shoulder. "This? I don't know, but I must have been pretty drunk because I don't recall where or why I got it. All I know is that I got it when I was in the war."

Bastila had noticed that he didn't talk about the Mandalorian Wars at all. It was hard to put that on if he had no recollections of it or just refused to acknowledge them.

Kaleb cupped some water in his hands and splashed it against the lower part of his face. He grabbed the towel that he used earlier and dabbed his jaw.

"What do you think?" He questioned as he faced her. "I thought I'd go with a thin strip down my chin, this time."

"It's…nice."

Kaleb glanced back at the mirror and started toying with his strip, while a smirk appeared on his face.

Bastila raised an eyebrow. _So he wasn't completely gone. _

A wicked thought crossed her mind. The true Kaleb had revealed himself and she was going to coax him out all the way.

"I've personally seen better…" She paused to let her words sink in and was glad when she saw his brow furrow in indignation. Bastila continued. "Like that beard you had before made out shaving cream. But it's your choice…even though it was a poor one."

"And I should listen to you…because you know so much about facial hair?"

_He had taken the bait. _She thought smugly. "True, you would think that you would know more about the subject, but clearly you don't if you picked something so…mediocre."

"Heh, the way you flatter." Kaleb smirked. "You better watch out, your emotion is showing."

"Right." Bastila told him dismissively. "If you're done horribly destroying your facial hair, you can get out now so I can take a shower."

"Hmm…still feeling dirty from our little tussle in the sand, huh?"

"Oh yes," She told him sarcastically. "That has to be the only reason why I'm taking a shower. It couldn't be because I haven't taken a shower yet and I want to clean up. No…that's _too _farfetched."

She brushed past Kaleb before he could reply and pushed him out the room.

"Hey, there's no need to shove!" He exclaimed. "I'm going, I'm going!"

She smiled at him and then closed the door.

Kaleb scratched his head. "So violent and pushy."

He caught on to the game of Bastila trying to make him act normally without seeming desperate for it. It was cute how she tried to manipulate so he rewarded her with what she wanted, but only so she didn't think anything as wrong.

_Surrre, that's the only reason why you did it. It couldn't be that you wanted to be that way around her. _

_Well, I… _

This friendship thing was going to be harder than he thought it would be. Had he become so accustomed to this game that he played, that he was completely vulnerable to Bastila without it?

Kaleb walked over to the meeting room's counter and took out a tea packet. He thought tea was the most disgusting drink ever, but Carth told him it would make him drowsy. He plopped the tea bag in some hot water and waited for it to fully dissolve.

'That's another reason why I don't like tea. It takes too long."

Kaleb got a spoon out of the counter and started to stir the tea bag so it would mix in faster. His actions were in vain, however, because the drink didn't change from its original status. He groaned in annoyance and decided to turn on the radio to pass time. He walked over to it and pushed the button as a slow tune out in to the area.

_I try to mask the way I feel, but the emotion I have is way to real- _

_I can't hide, baby. It's always inside. _

_I approach you and always lose my way, not being able to get out what I need to say- _

_What can I do? All my thoughts are of you, all my thoughts of you. _

Kaleb bobbed his head, liking the beat, so he left it on. He went back to his cup and saw that the tea had finally settled down. He took out the dripping tea packet and tossed it in the trash bin.

"Down the hatch."

Kaleb pinched his nose and swallowed the nasty liquid. "Uggh." He shivered in disgust after the cup had been emptied.

He threw the cup away while trying to think of something that he could do that would make him even more tired.

The man pounded his fist in his open palm. "I've got it! I'll fix the food dispenser! We need to eat at least one edible thing while we're on this ship and I'm pretty good with my hands."

Kaleb opened the machine's panel and groaned. There was so much pre-food gunk in the device, that it was a wonder it served food at all. He shook his head as he fetched a big spoon and some gloves for his hands.

"I'm betting that Davik wasn't real big on cleaning things." The elastic gloves stretched against his hands as he put them on one by one. "Oh yeah, I can save the galaxy, but let me just finish my clean-up duty first."

He chuckled as he picked up the spoon and the pail.

"Go to your happy place, Kaleb. Go to your happy place." He told himself as he started scooping out the mess. He brought out a revolting yellowish-brown scoop that was matted down and had a sickening smell exuding from it.

His eyes narrowed in repugnance as he put his free hand over his mouth. "When the hell did we have corn?" Kaleb exclaimed while he slammed the spoon against the side of the pail to force it to fall off.

As he persisted, a new verse of the song had come on and floated to his ears.

_Even then you still don't know, the warmth my eyes will always show- _

_Why can't you see? What you're doing to me. _

The song changed tempo slightly as it prepared for it's chorus.

_All my friends, ask what's wrong with me-I'm in a daze that I just can't break free. _

_Only you could make me do for love, what I won't do- for anybody else baby. _

_Got to know, cause this thing I feel, won't let me go. _

Kaleb scraped out the last of the gunk, closed the panel, and turned the dispenser off.

"Alright, now that I'm done with the cleaning, time to get mechanical." He looked around the room. "Mechanical…without tools…that's not going to work." He smirked. "But I know where I can get some."

The young man ran out of the room and headed back over to the workshop. He was surprised to see that Canderous wasn't still in there.

"Even Mandalorians have to sleep eventually, huh?"

Kaleb rummaged through the workbench's drawers to find what he needed.

-----------------------

Bastila wiped the steamy mirror with her hand and saw a truly distressed face. She looked away because even that expression couldn't even give a glimpse of what she felt inside. She had been conditioned, for as long as could be remembered, to resist strong emotions; but they were constantly attacking her and she truly didn't know how to defend herself. If she were on Dantooine, if a Master could help her, everything just might have been okay. They would instruct and guide her on getting over what she felt. But…no, that couldn't be possible. Not now. Not when they were so close to finding the Star Forge and reaching Malak. Bastila looked back at the mirror with a determined stare. This problem had to be resolved, but…how? She certainly couldn't avoid Kaleb through the rest of the mission, especially when they had their bond, but…he was at least attempting to make an effort to be just friends like she requested.

The Jedi wiped her hair off with her towel. _Requested…why did that sound so awful? I shouldn't have made it sound so…mandatory. We should both be able to enjoy each other's company freely, right? _

She sighed as she started to comb her hair. Forcing him to behave like his old self wasn't helping matters, but this new uncomfortable feeling that she experienced when she was now around him was unbearable. _I really do want to be close…just not on an intimate level._

"Force, that didn't even make sense to me." Bastila said aloud and put the towel back on the rack. "I'm contradicting myself, wanting my cake and to eat it too."

She groaned in frustration. This whole thing was fruitless. She could give herself a pep talk every time that she lost her way or became mixed up; but Kaleb's compassion would shine on her and that helplessness that took over…none of it would matter if that happened. It was becoming way too hard to remain objective. She loathed the fact that he could so easily bypass her guards and defenses and, done intentionally or not, she actually was starting to like that he knew her. When they talked, even argued, Kaleb took her mind off of the other troubles that strangled her each day. Even now she couldn't think of anything, but him but…when did it come to this point? When had her Jedi defenses become so fragile, so useless against him? Or maybe…this shield she had held so long had been let down willingly? Her mind was strong, but her spirit was becoming weaker with every meeting. She had to find a way to get back on her feet and regain control. Bastila was about to think deeper on that, but a definite malevolent tremor had rang out in the Force. Her thoughts couldn't be certain, but she was positive that it was Darth Malak was responsible. Bastila flicked the light off and went to warn her bond mate.

----------------------------------

"Ok," Kaleb said while he was underneath the food dispenser. "I think it was connect the red wire to the green and the blue to the yellow." He held the wires inches apart with his pliers at the ready. "Hope it works."

He connected them and, after a short pause, the machine began to hum evenly.

"Hey, we're not all dead-and that's always a plus in my book."

"Kaleb!" Bastila called urgently, when she entered the area.

He rose up too quickly, to see what was wrong, and he knocked his head against the panel. "_Ow_, way too fast!" Kaleb put his hand on his head. "Aw man, brain damage! Two plus two is three hundred and forty-nine."

"Why are you down there?"

He made sure that he was all the way above the metal and stood up, automatically feeling the blood seep down his forehead. Since when had he become such a klutz around her?

He winced as he touched the wound with his finger to see how big it was and then looked at her.

"I was fixing the dispenser since I had nothing else to do."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean for you to cut yourself."

"Yeah, well, I really wasn't planning on it either." Kaleb told her indifferently.

She sighed in agitation. "What? Do you want me to heal it for you?"

He wanted no more than to say "No, but you can kiss it and make it better." but his sensibility got the best of him.

_You two are just crewmates now, so act like it. _He chastised himself.

"Nope. I'll heal it myself." Kaleb put his hand on the cut briefly and treated it. "See, all better. Now what's on your mind?"

Bastila couldn't figure out if he was mad at her or something else. He was so damn calm all the time and it infuriated her to no end.

"I felt a disturbance in the Force. I'm sure you felt it also?"

"Oh, that." He said nonchalantly. "That's probably Malak thinking of a plan dispose of us like all the other times."

"Yes…but this one seemed focused."

"It could be that he preparing a trap. I wouldn't be surprised since he did find the Star Maps too. He's probably starting to get wise to our mission and knows that there's only one planet that we'd be going to."

"But there are two planets left."

"Right, but Korriban is a sith world, so Malak would have people keeping tabs on us. He'd know that we've arrived there before we would."

"True…" She trailed, but couldn't help to notice that Kaleb was analyzing her closely with a sort of a humor mixed with astonishment.

Bastila gave him a stern look. "Can I help you with something?"

"No, it's just-" He stopped himself. "Never mind."

"Oh, just come out with it!"

"I've…never seen you with your hair out before. It's just strange, is all."

She must have taken what he said offensively because she immediately went into her defensive mode.

"And what exactly do you mean by _strange_?"

"Woah, I didn't mean any disrespect. I think that you look really good that way. The way that your hair is all long and curly, it gives you a real…exotic look."

He saw her warningly raise her eyebrow, giving him a look that told him he had just made his predicament worse.

"I'm quite sure that I didn't ask for your opinion of me! I suggest, besides anyway that I may appear, you keep your thoughts to yourself."

Kaleb shook his head. Was it really this hard to speak to her without joking around? He had no defense up, it was just him trying to be as friendly as possible; but that clearly was not working.

He put his hands up in a surrendering gesture. "I wasn't trying to give an opinion and I'm sorry for staring. I was just caught off guard for a moment, but you're right, it was still rude. I'm not attempting to make fun of you, but…I'll come back when you're in a better mood."

"So now you're saying that it's my mood that caused this?"

"What? No, I…" He sighed and decided to change the subject before he messed up anymore. "I'm sorry, alright?" He went to the cabinet. "I cleaned out and fixed the dispenser, so we can actually eat from it now. Are you hungry?"

"No."

Kaleb shrugged. "Then I guess I'll eat from the machine that I backbreaking labored over for untold hours…alone and by myself.

Bastila rolled her eyes. "And now you're using guilt to push me into eating with you?"

He smiled and took out a plastic bowl from the cabinet. "We can't have dinner together? I consider you a good friend."

She couldn't tell if he was being ironic, but sat down at the table either way. She still wasn't hungry, but she did have something to ask him.

"Let's see if it really works." He scanned the panel. "I'm feeling…pretty soupy right now."

He pressed some random soup buttons and a brown creamy liquid filled his bowl and stopped exactly near the top. Kaleb picked up the bowl, sniffed it, and grinned at Bastila.

"Mmm, mmm, good!"

She shook her head as he got a spoon and sat down.

"Aw, come on. You know you want to try it."

Her face scrunched up. "What is _it_?"

"I call it…The Kaleb. It's different types of soups mixed together randomly."

She smiled. "That's a great name. It describes you perfectly."

"How so?"

"You're just like your soup; different traits mixed together capriciously."

Kaleb placed a spoonful of the broth into his mouth and grinned widely after tasting it. "Then I'm delicious."

She sighed. "You're a lost cause."

"But see, I've accepted this and made it my own."

"I see." She said in feigned awe. "And just how did you achieve this?"

"It's a very through and complicated process, but if you really want to know, you can buy my book. 29.99 plus tax."

"I'll get right on that."

He chuckled. "Well, in the meantime, you gotta try this."

"I don't _gotta _do anything."

"Excuse me for my directness, your highness, but it would be in your best interest to try this exquisite bisque."

"And I was going to try it too…until you said that."

He gave her a disbelieving stare. "No, you weren't."

"I was, but then you didn't help yourself by being derisive."

Kaleb smirked, knowing that she would despise it. "You scared?" He taunted with a challenge in his eyes.

Bastila scoffed. "Of the soup, no, but of me possibly dying; yes."

"I ate it and I'm not sick."

"Yet."

He shrugged. "Whatever. If you're scared of a little soup, far be it from me to judge."

She rolled her eyes. "Please. I've seen scarier things in your boots."

He rested his head on his palm, still smirking. "I don't think you got the guts, but…since it's so harmless, eat some."

She met his challenging stare with equal contempt. "Well then, give me the bowl."

"Come over here and get it." Kaleb told her, not wanting his comment to sound so suggestive, but hearing it come out that way.

"Why can't you just pass it to me?"

"Because one, I don't have anything to prove like you do, and two; if I just passed the bowl, it would be too easy on your part."

Bastila glared at him as she got up, walked over to her disgustingly entertained bond-mate, and sat down in a new chair that was closer.

He got a new spoon, dipped it into the soup, and positioned it near her mouth.

"Here comes the starship about to jump into hyperspace." Kaleb said in a baby voice.

She looked at him like he was certifiable. "You _really _have a death wish, don't you?"

He laughed as he put the spoon in the soup and gave it to her. "I didn't think you'd go for it, but you can't blame me for trying."

"I can you blame you for be incredibly stupid."

"Blah, blah, blah-eat the soup."

She grabbed the utensil, getting a portion of the goopy liquid on it and put it near her face. Bastila stopped, right before the spoon touched her mouth, and looked in revulsion at the vile brown liquid.

Kaleb faked sneezed. "_Chicken!_"

She glared at him spitefully while he looked back innocently.

"I'm terribly sorry. My allergies must be acting up." He sneezed again. "_Too scared to eat the soup._" He rubbed the bottom of his nose and sniffed. "See?"

Bastila put the spoon in her mouth, but with a shaky hand, and swallowed it.

"Lucky spoon…I'm real envious, but it seemed like you enjoyed the Kaleb." He sniggered. "Bet you just can't have one."

She responded with a look of pure nausea. "That had to be the single most unappetizing thing I've ever eaten."

Kaleb scoffed. "You're lying hard."

"Why would lie about that?"

"You just can't stand the fact that maybe, just once, I was right."

"I couldn't care less if you're right or not, because in most cases, you're wrong anyway."

He placed his hands behind his head, leaned back in the chair, and closed his eyes. "You can lie as much as you want, but if you really didn't like it, you would have spit it out."

"I would never spit my food out, no matter how disgusting."

"Of course you wouldn't," He told her as a grin appeared on his lips. "You're way to much of a girly girl to do that."

"Are you trying to say that I'm prissy?" She asked indignantly.

"Well, that too, but what I'm really implying is that you're easy to read."

He knew that he must have really touched a nerve then because her facial abruptly switched to full on anger.

"I am not predictable!"

"Oh no, never that, but…you're not full of surprises either. Sort of stuffy." Kaleb's grin spread. "But don't get mad about it. Being boring works for the average full time jedi." He sat upright again. "I just have the special ability of being able to read you like a data pad."

"I truly doubt that it's that easy due to your ability. Our bond is obviously the only reason why you have an inkling about what's going on inside my head."

Kaleb shook his head. "You're wrong again. The bond might help, but reading you is all me, myself, and I."

"Is that so? Then since you're so adept at "_reading_" me, what am I thinking now?"

"Besides the enormously huge like you have for me?" He said sarcastically.

Bastila shot him an annoyed look. "Just do it."

"Hmm…you're curious about something. What do you want, nosy?"

Even she had to admit that it was impressive that he knew her so well, but she didn't like it one bit that he had called her nosy again.

"I am in no way nosy, but I do wish to know how you did that."

"Ah…so Miss. Nosy wants to know my tricks?"

She sighed. "Sure."

"Your face always scrunches up with thought and then your eyes get all cloudy and distant."

Bastila scoffed expressively. "Am I so transparent?"

"No, I definitely wouldn't go that far. I think that you only let me see what you allow."

She rewarded him with a secretive smile for his answer.

Kaleb chuckled. "I'll take that as a yes."

"I would like to ask you something…if you'll permit it."

"What?" He asked flabbergasted. "I have a choice to refuse your question and I won't die?"

"You make me sound heartless!"

"I just call 'em as I see 'em, but yeah, I'll accept your query."

"I've been observing your actions for a while now and couldn't help but notice that you still stick to your tenants of serving neither light or dark. I am curious…as to how you do it. I can sense a blankness and fulfillment of both, but I don't understand how that's possible. Is there not a constant battle waging on inside you?"

"Wow! You make me sound way more accomplished then I really am. I'm just being a hardheaded brat, not trying to find inner balance in myself. About this unimaginable chaos inside me, no, I don't worry about it." He chuckled. "That's the problem with you jedi and sith; you fret about the little stuff way to much. Whether it's about falling or how to become stronger faster, you forget why you set on your paths in the first place. I just do whatever I think is right…or wrong in some cases. It's good to make mistakes; you learn from them."

"I wish that I could be so…carefree." Bastila told him softly with a quiet envy. "I've always been too quick to anger or too quick to get involved. My masters constantly berated me for it."

"But why? Why should you have to mask yourself like that? How can true peace and serenity be found be achieved if you demerit your feelings or you're constantly worrying about them?"

"I have…often dreamed of confrontations with Darth Malak. Using all my power to destroy him and stop the evil of the Sith. I just have to think about all the devastation that the Sith have caused and I…I get so furious!"

Kaleb was surprised when he so her hands clench with anger, but she quickly relaxed them.

"Yet we are told such feelings are the path to the Dark Side."

"There's no way that you can even attempt to be whole if you block out something so influential, so…absolute."

"But…aren't you afraid of the Dark Side at all?"

"Almost as afraid of its lighter counterpart. Even though sith do use passions to fuel their power; they have no real truth in it. Have you ever wondered why they almost always use hate and rage as their base emotions? No other feeling, save one, is strong enough to obtain the strength they wish to achieve."

"Is love the other one?"

"Yup, the one thing both parties detest so much and won't use. That's were I think the jedi's power comes from; that universal…like that they have for everybody. The sith can't use love because they cannot fully grasp it."

"Of course not! There's no way that they could when they slaughter even there own so needlessly."

"That's true enough, but realistically, how could you be filled with love and still be able to kill a fellow comrade that you've known for years? The emotion is useless to them because it leads to rational thought. You start to become merciful or want to sacrifice yourself for others. What sort of use could this be in an order who lives and thrives off of death and ruin?"

"None, but…what about you? Just what do you want to be? What are you trying to do?"

Kaleb smiled weakly. "What about me? All I want to do is remove the veils of deceit that others have forced over my face." He laughed. "So many want to be able to use the force without knowing the price that has to paid. Regular everyday people are jealous of my abilities, but have no idea that I am even more desirous of their consistency. Is it so much to ask, too much of a grievance to be like everyone else? To be oblivious to…" He put a finger on the side of his head. "Everything that we know? It isn't, but it's taken for granted and then flaunted in our faces mercilessly. I strive, no hunger to be just that-Kaleb. That's all. The force is not too much of a luxury that it should deny me this, is it? Is it so fair that we have no choice in being force sensitive or not? Is it right that we were sent on this mission while everybody else goes on with his or her lives? We are praised for being shackled and bound to a malevolent entity that we have no idea of what's capable of." Kaleb opened his eyes and shocked Bastila with the ferocity of his gaze. "I think that's why Revan did what he did, He probably knew that he would forever be a slave to the force unless he acted and found a way to be stronger than it was. Even if it was the dark side, he commanded it without it being able to control him."

She shook her head. "There is always a price, Kaleb. Revan's humanity was lost in the process."

"You're right…there is always is a price. Humanity has to be surrendered to gain the right of becoming so close to being god-like. But how long will we simpletons confide in and value our lives of simplicity? Are we all fools, because we hate knowledge? Because we love the fact that we are ignorant to any form of new ideas?"

Bastila pondered on what he had said, but answered after a brief pause. "I think anything that you have to pay your humanity for is not for our hands or understanding. There are just things out there that we simply aren't meant to know. Too much information or clarification will only result in an endless struggle to fix everything, when it is evident that every single thing cannot be solved. Those who try to do this greedily, lead their own way to their death. "

He nodded. "I believe some of what you just said. I know that having too much of an overwhelming thirst for knowledge or power will only lead to self-destruction. It would drive most anyone crazy to finally be able to figure out what you've been delving for and only see that the answers are ruinous in every aspect. But then again…part of me accepts all of this and still wants to know. Wants to be able to use the information I gather to make things more just and to at last be able to have a real option."

"Yes…a part of me agrees with that also. It would worth anything to vanquish such outstanding evil, even if it meant giving in to my baser emotions."

"Would it be so bad to let go and achieve a far greater purpose? It could be worth it, right?"

Bastila sighed sadly. She wanted to ease Kaleb's troubled mind, to say that everything would work out. It was the least she owed him for all the lying and cover-ups that she had done and told to him, but of course, this could not be.

"The idea that you have stems from a well enough source, but along the way, your ideals become twisted. Even though you just want to make things equal for everyone, you become a tyrant trying to enforce your own laws and doctrines. There will probably never be a time where there will be perfect harmony in the galaxy, so…all we can do is get as close as we can."

"But, Bastila, even knowing that you'll probably never get that "perfect harmony", why do you go on knowing that your attempts are futile?"

She went silent again, wanting to explain her words carefully.

"I do it because…even if it's for a short time, the momentary pause of unspeakable evil upon the galaxy is worth fighting for. I'll agree that it isn't the most glamorous job in the world, but having knowledge that your efforts are keeping countless numbers of people safe is it's own reward."

Kaleb gave her a tired, but warm smile. ""You're really self-less, do you know that? You always think of others before yourself and I believe that trait actually comes from you, not what the jedi implanted in you."

"You give me far too much credit. I am just doing my duty."

"And you're modest too." He chuckled. "Whatever, I'll brag for you. So many people depend on you and you never complain or grumble like I do. You have that Battle Meditation ability and with it comes the overwhelming responsibility of understanding that you could be the Jedi's and the Republic's last hope. And then, to top it all off, you have a sith lord relentlessly and tirelessly hunting you down so he can turn you to his methods. You're amazing. I really don't know how you can do it."

"Now you're just flattering." She told him, trying not to sound as embarrassed as she felt from his comments. She couldn't refute that him saying that she was amazing didn't bring a certain feeling of bliss inside of her.

"You can ask anyone." He rubbed his eyes. "I never flatter."

"Well, thank you, but you're not exactly on a field trip either. You're an excellent soldier that located me on Taris, mastered the Force around you in a matter of weeks, always find a way to help us out by using you're talents, and the last time I checked, you were being hunted down by Sith also."

Kaleb yawned as a sudden wave of sleepiness washed over him. "I just try to do what I can."

She smiled. "And you say I'm modest, but you're tired. You should go to sleep."

"Yeah…now that tea wants to kick in." He looked at the digital clock and noticed that it was 2:05 a.m. "You should get some rest too, since we have a pretty busy day tomorrow." He yawned again. "Carth said we're only 15 standard hours away from Manaan."

Bastila nodded, but not before contributing a yawn of her own. "Darn you and your contagious yawn!"

He chuckled and then tipped the bowl to his mouth and gulped it down. He grinned and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

"Can't waste any food when there are people starving out there somewhere." Kaleb told her as he placed the bowl and the spoon in the sink.

She smiled. "Always so thoughtful about others."

"Hmm…maybe one of those Jedi traits got in after all. My mom always used to tell me that when I didn't finish my food so I guess it just stuck, but that's another story for another day. We need to rest for now."

Bastila got up herself and wished him a good night before leaving the room. He did the same, turned off the lights in the room, and headed over to the cockpit. Kaleb knew that Carth and Canderous were in the room and also knew that he would get no kind of sleep with their snoring. When he entered the area, he was happy find a blanket, which Carth had left, in the pilot chair. Kaleb settled in the rigid leather chair, covered himself with the blanket, and was asleep as soon as his eyes closed.

---------------------------------

A bluish surrounding encompassed the pitch black Star Map. Kaleb felt cold and constricted as the mechanism opened slowly and revealed the treasured map inside.

"Ah there you are." A scratchy old voice announced, serving only to wake him up from his surprisingly peaceful slumber. "It seems that you're too good for a common bunk like the rest of us."

"Old man…" Kaleb said groggily and then groaned. "What do you want?"

"I want you to get up. We're almost to Manaan."

"Almost? That means you woke me up for nothing, and that I could still be sleeping?"

"Aw, things not going to you're schedule, kid?"

He laughed with his eyes still closed. "I'm just still trying to find out why a grumpy old fart got up before me."

Jolee scoffed. "Well since you asked so nicely, I'll tell you that it's none of your business. Now hurry up and get a move on."

He pulled his blanket off to make him react.

"Alright, grandpa, I'm awake; but now you've gotta answer a question because you woke me in the first place."

"Must be my lucky day."

The young man grinned. "Whatever, you still got to answer it."

Jolee harrumphed. "I'm old, damn it! I'm allowed to be enigmatic when I want to, and don't you go telling me otherwise." He rubbed his pepper goatee. "You know, you remind me of someone else I knew ages ago. Pleasant enough fellow, great destiny…all of that. Breath like a Bantha, though."

Kaleb blew some breath in his hand, smelled it, and grimaced. "Ok, I'll give that one to you, but I just woke up and I haven't brushed yet. But really, you're avoiding my question before I've even asked it."

"You got that right, but tell you what…when you get to be my age, you can go ahead and answer any question you like to. You have my permission."

The younger man laughed. "Good one! I'll actually listen to your life story now, it was so good."

"Well, if you stopped interrupting, maybe I could tell it. Now where was I? Oh, yes. Andor Vex was his name. The Force swirled around him like a hurricane, that's how great his destiny was."

"I bet he was as great as this story because I've never heard of him."

"No, you wouldn't have. Sometimes swirling Force is just swirling Force. It gets us old Jedis excited at our age so we go "ooo, destiny!"

Kaleb chuckled. "You got a twisted sense of humor Jolee, do you know that? Not that I'm telling you to stop, but just putting it out there."

"Oh, don't worry about me, boy. I wouldn't have cared either way, but back to the story. Well, it turned out that poor Andor believed a wee bit too much in the infallibility of that destiny of his. That over confidence turned out to be his downfall."

Kaleb groaned. "Please don't tell me you're using that jedi criticism so I can discover a hidden meaning. I get enough of that from Bastila."

Jolee chuckled. "Hmm…I bet you do, but the Jedi wouldn't be complete without it, huh?"

"True, but it doesn't make it any less annoying. Either way, I'm not cocky if that's what you're getting at. I have my doubts and fears like everybody else."

"Is that so? You hide them well. Whether that's a good or bad thing is up to you. And about the whole overconfidence issue, I hadn't noticed it in you either. Even if I had, I would never comment on it. We're talking about Andor, remember?" Now where was I…right. Andor's downfall. I was pretty young, myself, when it happened. At the time, I though Andor's destiny couldn't be more boring."

"You young?" Kaleb snorted. "I'm not even going to attempt to think that far back, so why don't you fill me in?"

"Well, let's just say that I was a strapping young lad with a head full of hair and Coruscant was a small town with a well." The old man chuckled. "I was just about to abandon Andor to whatever the Force intended for him, when his ship was overtaken by a Dimean warship." Jolee saw Kaleb's confused expression and explained further. "It's obvious that you've never heard of the Dimeans, but at the time, they were a nasty lot led a nastier warlord named Kraat. Tall fellow, big teeth."

"The worst of them have it."

"Kraat has us hauled onto the bridge of his ship for questioning, and that's when I knew Andor's destiny was at hand."

"How'd you know that?"

"Swirling Force, remember? Jedi here? Granted, I was just interpreting the signs, but we get trained in that sort of thing you know. More or less."

"Just keep telling the story, geezer."

"I tell you, no respect for elders these days. The one thing I looked forward to about getting old, and you just take it away every chance you get."

The young man dug some earwax out of his ear with his pinky. "Oh, I'm sorry. I was bored, so you must have been talking."

Jolee shook his head. "Well, Andor decides that his destiny makes him invulnerable and starts making all sorts of demands. Free me now, I'm not answering questions, blah blah blah, don't you know who I am? Kraat finally figures he's had enough and begins crushing Andor's neck. I told the boy he should have kept his mouth shut. I think he agreed too…or those could've just been gurgling noises. Hmm…well, anyway, Kraat has enough of Andor and tosses him aside into the giant energy intake shaft. Andor gets sucked in and starts bouncing around, heh, screaming…heh."

"There's that warped sense of humor coming out again."

"Funny is funny, kid. Any way you look at it. Maybe Andor hit something sensitive on the way down or just didn't agree with the reactor core, but next thing I know, all the ship's alarms are ringing."

"You're kidding! Someone's thrown into a reactor core and alarms ring! Better get that ship checked ASAP."

The old man ignored him. "Everyone panics and I run, barely making it to the ship in time before the explosion. Kraat dies horribly, and the Dimeans never quite recovered. He changed the political course of the entire sector for centuries to come. I'd call that quite a destiny, wouldn't you?"

Kaleb opened his eyes. "Huh? Oh yeah, Andor, sucked into energy thingy, great destiny-right."

"You've got a smart mouth on you, kid. You should do so well to be sucked into the engine of some evil Sith Lord, you know. Andor was a hero…sort of."

"Well, I've heard a rumor that Malak is searching for someone to fill that position, but I just don't think I have enough experience."

Jolee snorted. "Anyway, go on and get ready. My throat is dry and you're making me cranky. Shoo!"

"What? I made you cranky? Such a scandal!" Kaleb exclaimed as he walked out the area. "And don't think that you've gotten away without answering my questions. It may not be now, but I'm going to get an answer."

Jolee just scoffed.

------------------------------

Kaleb walked through the meeting room determined to get rid of his bad breath. It was so rancid that he could taste it and that just wouldn't do. Bastila walked in with a cordial expression and was, he guessed, probably going to go over their vision. He stopped her before she could speak, and put his hand a little ways off from his mouth to block the smell.

"Ok, Bastila, I really need to brush right now because you'd most likely faint from the stench of my bad breath, so I'll give you an overview. Yes, I felt the vision, yay force for helping us see one of the Star Maps, I know that you're wondering why a map would be here because it's a water world, I think that Manaan might have some underwater tours or something, now you want to know how Malak and Revan found a way down there when so much of the vast oceans are uncharted, and you know I clearly don't know the answer to that so we're just going to find like on all the other planets we've been on."

He hurried off to the 'fresher while she stared after him, stupefied that he knew what she was going to say. Kaleb turned on the refresher light and laid a pea-sized drop of toothpaste on his brush.

"The one thing I hate about brushing your teeth early. Your food tastes minty afterwards."

As he brushed the sides of his teeth, his mind wandered on just how where they going to get underwater. He definitely wasn't planning on growing a set of gills or getting anywhere close to the water for that matter. Also, he didn't know if the Selkath were friendly or not but knew they were strict. Kaleb was sure he would find a way, but if they were really lucky, they might find some pro-Republic friends on the planet. He turned on the faucet, spit, swished some water in his mouth, and spit again.

"Brush, rinse, and repeat."

He checked his breath his again, was happy with it, and smiled at the mirror. His reflection looked considerably better from the last time, but he would accept anything as long as his eyes weren't yellow. Kaleb opened the door and headed back over to the meeting room to eat. Bastila was no longer in there, but Juhani was silently performing some strange slow dance. Even though they had been on this mission for a while now, he still hardly knew about his Cathar companion. She always excluded herself from the rest of the crew, probably thinking that they wouldn't accept her.

_That's not going to do. _He thought as he silently approached her.

She deserved to be involved and he would help with this anyway he could.

"Good morning, Juhani!"

She automatically dropped her pose and went back into a normal stance as she opened her eyes. "Good morning to you also, Padawan. Can I be of any assistance?"

"Actually, yeah, thanks for asking." Kaleb sat down. "I was wondering if we could talk. I haven't seen much of you for a while now, so I thought we could catch up."

She looked truly shocked that he would take time out to speak to her. "What is it that you would like to talk to me about?"

"I would really like to know about your past, if you don't mind talking about it."

"Well…" Juhani hesitated. "I suppose I have not talked very much about the Jedi I met back home. They, all of them, were so very…invigorating."

"Invigorating?"

"I should say, that they were so very much alive. So full of hope and energy and zeal. In retrospect, I can see it was little bit tragic…"

"Why tragic?" Kaleb asked, confused by her choice of words.

"These Jedi were going to fight the Mandalorians just after they had invaded. Many of the Jedi perished in the fighting. But at that time, that moment, they seemed invincible. Especially their leader, who they talked about all the time. Paragons of light and justice, sweeping away all inequity before them. It was like looking at gods…" She trailed in admiration.

He laughed. "The jedi are hardly gods-nowhere near really. In any case, they must have been misrepresenting themselves."

"I was merely using poetic license. Those Jedi…they were enthralling…everyone wanted just to touch them. Some people thought it would bring them luck." She sighed sadly, almost bitterly. "Not that the peace that they brought lasted very long…"

"The Jedi left."

"Yes. The people grew complacent. Those who had been wronged saw their chance at revenge…and so the cycle continues. The oppressed become the new generation of oppressors. The human oppressed that is…the non-humans were never treated well in any case…we felt the brunt of both administrations…"

"That reminds me of Taris." He saw Juhani's eyes widened slightly and was curious about this, but continued. "When I was there, the non-humans were treated so horribly. There was this one Ithordian who was getting rocks thrown at him by kids. He couldn't do anything about it, though, because if he did he would be arrested. It was…disgusting…that your own kind could be so cruel. Those kids didn't care one bit that he might have died."

"Of course they didn't!" The Cathar spat at him. "No one looks out for the injustices that we had suffered through! Oh, no!"

Kaleb was shocked from her sudden burst of anger, but it quickly turned into pity. "I am deeply sorry for whatever you went through, but we have something in common but the roles are switched. I know how it feels to be treated like you're no better than the dirt you walk on. You make take enjoyment from this, but on my homeplanet there were a lot of non-human slavers. We were the hunted, only counted as prey or slave."

Juhani shook her head in regret. "No…I am sorry for what I have said. I did not know about your past, but I still should not have outbursts like that."

"Hey, it's alright. I've asked you about your past, so it's only fair that you know about mine too. Beside, it's good to blow off some steam every now and then."

"I thank you for your understanding, but I should still guard against such strong emotions. They could once again lead me to the path of the dark side and I must be ever careful that I do not fall into those patterns again."

"Juhani, I'm sure you'll be fine, but I'm still here for advice of just to talk if you need me. I don't how much help I'll be, but hey, I'm here for ya."

She smiled. "I…thank you for your support. My outburst was uncalled for, but you did not lash back at me. You are a much better Jedi than I, it would seem."

He scoffed. "Oh, no. Uh-uh. You're probably way farther than me in the whole jedi race, but watch out for Bastila-she's a fighter."

"I thank you again, but let us not speak of this anymore. Is there anything else that you require?"

"Yup, one more thing. I would like to know more about those movements you were doing earlier. They were so precise and beautiful, that I had to know what they are."

"What I was performing is called a katra."

"Katra?" Kaleb grinned. "Sounds cool enough, but what does it do?"

"Katras help you not only with your battle skills, but with finding peace in the Force as well."

"So…it's like a hands-on approach to regular meditation?"

"Yes, in a way."

His eyes lit up with excitement. "Ooh, I wanna learn how to do them! Come on, teach me, please!"

Juhani let out a soft chuckle from his enthusiasm. "I am no master and it is difficult to explain, but I will demonstrate you through it."

She dropped her hands to her side and was perfectly still. "You first have to find your center."

Kaleb saw the regular ferocity of her force calm down and become docile.

"The Force is your guide; you must follow it." She told him as her arm and leg moved together seamlessly.

He stood in awe as he saw rivulets of the force following around her and conjoining with her movements each time. It was as if the two were becoming one. Kaleb memorized most of the stances, thanked Juhani quietly, and left; not wanting to break her out of concentrative poses.

----------------------------------

Kaleb went to the back of the ship to try out his newly learned katras.

He entered the cargo hold and sighed when he saw Bastila meditating. "I just can't seem to get away from you. You're stalking me, right?"

She kept her pose. "Oh yes, Kaleb. I have nothing better to do but follow you around all day. And, it just so happens that I followed you into a room that I was already in."

"Well, I bet it's a pretty rewarding job in the long run, huh?"

Bastila chose not to answer him and continued with her meditations.

"So now you're ignoring me? That's just not nice." She still didn't reply so he let out an amused scoff. "That's alright, I don't want to play with you anyway. I have my own meditating to do."

She wouldn't show it, but she was impressed that he was actually going to meditate. _Maybe he's not completely hopeless after all. _

Kaleb started out by stretching his limbs. He smirked as he thought of something and started groaning in pleasure erotically.

"_Ahh…Y-yeahhh…ooo…ooo…that's the spot…right there." _

He saw that Bastila was becoming irritated with his little display and decided that it was time for the big finale. Kaleb twisted his back halfway around, inhaled sharply, and exhaled raggedly in ecstasy.

"Kaleb!"

"Yeah?" He answered breathlessly.

"Do you mind?"

"About you meditating?" He opened his eyes and smirked. "No, knock yourself out."

"You know that I meant stop your what you are doing!"

"Excuse me, but is my stretching bothering you so badly?"

"No! You're perverse grunting is!"

"Perverse?" He exclaimed in anger. "I wasn't-" He stopped in scratched his head. "You know that is a big word, but as soon as I find out what it means-I'm gonna go off! So, blah!" Kaleb stuck his tongue out at her.

"You're such a child."

He smiled. "Why, thank you."

"That wasn't meant as a compliment."

"Well, then too bad because I took it as one."

Bastila scoffed. "I don't understand why you need to stretch anyway when you're about to meditate."

"I was just trying to be limber and flexible. It's an invaluable skill, trust me."

"And why is it so invaluable?"

"Well, it could save my life in a battle and it's great for…other things."

_Other things? _She thought in confusion, but suddenly realized what he was implying.

"Ew."

Kaleb smirked, but stood completely still. Juhani had told him to find his center, but he wanted a challenge. He wanted to be able to move gracefully and skillfully when his force was in a state of peril because, let's face it, most of time it was. He made his force as erratic as possible. It was so overwhelming that his mind was in a state of disruption. Everything that had been bothering, worrying, or scaring him was screaming and flying throughout his head.

_What am I doing here? There's no way that I can save a galaxy. _

_Am I really strong enough to beat Malak? Of course you can…you have to! _

_These visions are killing me! _

_Why am I having Revan's memories unless I am him? I can't be Revan because he's dead…right? _

_Do I…like Bastila more than I let on? Even if I do…she doesn't…like me. _

_I'll never be good enough. _

_But I just want to be myself, that's all. _

Kaleb blocked the voices out and focused on the force he was exuding. All was black except a red vibrant pulsing swirl and a calm steady blue swirl. They disappeared every five seconds and were parallel, but each still tried to engulf him into their light. Kaleb met the moves of the two energies, defending and blocking away from them. They were familiar, but both were lacking. He didn't approve of either, so instead of following one of them, he resisted both. The two swirls abruptly came together, preparing to intercept him, but he crouched down and backed away.

The swirls collided in a brilliance of sparks and turned a dark purple. This deep purple swirl was thick, powerful, and illuminated. He knew it had to be corrupt, but couldn't sense it. He had seen it merge with the evil swirl, but it had merged with the good one also. Could this be the balance that was desired? It felt…instinctual. Like it had been used and controlled before, but was only waiting to be tapped into once again. This energy also didn't disappear at all and didn't try to attack him. It seemed to be waiting patiently, but still not stopping it's process to receive him. Kaleb…wanted to follow it. He lusted after it because it was so…right. He took a step toward it to embrace this new mysterious force…

--------------------------------

Bastila was trying to connect with the Force, but Kaleb's sheer power was…disturbing. There should be no reason why the Force surrounding him should be so vicious and threatening while he was meditating. Her eyes widened with shock and she gasped when she saw the tremulous amount of force ripping the air around him. It surrounded him in currents and was much more than he ever let out, but she still knew that it wasn't even half of what he was capable of. This was dangerous. Whatever he was doing, it was manipulating the force into a destructive energy. Bastila touched his mind, and was surprised that it was open, but there were so many blurred colors spinning around. Even though she couldn't hear his thoughts, she could feel their emotions and how out of control they were. When one thought stopped, twice as many entered. It was total anarchy that immediately reminded her of when Brejick had forced that neural disrupter while she was his prisoner. Bastila commanded herself to find her center and succeeded in diminishing his racing musings, except one. A violet one wouldn't go away and seemed to be the most important. She knew that her main objective was to calm Kaleb down, but…she might never have another chance to know what he was truly feeling. Curiosity took over and she tapped into it. A surge of power filled her, but it was…dejected and abandoned. It wasn't hateful, however, but had spite against something. The feeling that she was experiencing was needy and wasn't getting what it searched for back. Rapidly, the emotion changed, as if ordered to before she could inquire anything more about it.

Everything was silent again, but a sliver of light shone through. This one was hidden and guarded so well that it was clear entry was not an option. This served more as an enticement than a ward to her, so Bastila dug deeper until she saw a faint gray light peering from the darkness. Her instincts told her to go back, that it was none of her business. It almost won out, until the gray color turned silver, as it got brighter. It was as someone had put a child's favorite candy in front of them and told them not to eat. The light was just far too persuasive and she delved into it. This particular emotion was…she didn't have the words.

----------------------------------

Kaleb was lost. Something wasn't right, but he couldn't figure out what it was. He felt like he was being invaded so he had closed off parts of what he was feeling. Since he had done this though, the purple swirl of force had gone away. Swallowed now in complete darkness, Kaleb tried to find his way. He was lost and had no idea where to go. Before, he was so very close to grasping that purple stream of energy and learning its secrets, but now…an abyss of emptiness took over and wouldn't let go. It was evident that his previous enlightenment wasn't going to be achieved twice in one day, so he decided to figure out what had interrupted his progress in the first place.

-------------------------------

The thoughts of this silver emotion, the feelings came too fast and there were far too many. Overwhelming confusion replaced what was once clarity…Bastila couldn't keep up with it. There was despair, longing, joy, disappointment, and…something else that was the worst of them all. There could be no description for it or none to her understanding, but…the urge, wanting, and the hurt-it became hers. She was trapped by it, but she longed for something so much. This…thing that the emotion either couldn't obtain or was being neglected of. No-it was too much. The pain of it all was uncontrollable and control was something that Bastila wanted back. She had to escape, had to get out anyway possible, but the way was blocked. All sense of stability that she once had was gone until…the unknown feeling stopped. She was being forcibly expelled out as the silver light became weaker and returned to it's lesser gray. Bastila didn't wait for an explanation, and now that the path was open, she returned to her own mind. Her eyes opened and she saw Kaleb in front of her, smirking.

"Did you have fun?"

She knew her face colored from being found out by him.

"I didn't-"

"It's ok, I forgive you." He got up and brushed himself off. "No harm, no foul."

Bastila wasn't expecting that. "You're not going to tell me that I'm nosy or something to that effect?"

"Nope."

She rose and eyed him suspiciously. "And you're not planning something?"

"Not at this moment."

"Who are you?" Her eyes narrowed and she put her hand on his forehead.

Kaleb chuckled goofily. "Your hand is warm."

"Well, you're not ill."

Canderous suddenly entered the room. "Hey, I've found the two lovebirds getting all touchy feely in the cargo hold!" The Mandalorian announced with a smirk on his face.

Bastila quickly removed her hand and Kaleb just laughed from the way things looked.

"What did you want to tell us, Canderous? Are we on Manaan?"

"Yeah, and everybody was waiting for you two, but I'll go tell them you're occupied."

Bastila regained her composure. "That won't be necessary. I was just checking if Kaleb had a fever."

"Yeah," Kaleb told him, trying to conceal a grin. "We were doing the whole roll-play thing, you know, trying to spice things up. Bastila was the naughty assistant and I was the medic about to take my needle out and give her shot. Heh, wink, wink."

Canderous laughed as he left the room and Bastila gave him the usual "I'm going to kill you in fifteen different ways before the day is over" look. "Why in the _Force _would say something like that?"

"Besides it being funny as crap? It got Canderous to leave sooner."

"And you could find no other way to do this?" She asked angrily.

"Hey, this was split-second thinking here. I said what I came up with first, so excuse me for not exploring other possibilities."

She scoffed. "Well, he said that we're on Manaan so we better get going."

"Hold up there, speedy. This planet is neutral, so that means all kinds of people would come here."

"Your point?"

"My point is if all kinds of people come here, there has to be a hotel. Let's get a room for once."

"And who's going to pay for all this?" Bastila asked skeptically, but really did like his idea.

"Of course, it's going to be compliments of me. I still have plenty of bonds left from racing and if we run out, Motta said there was an official track on Manaan. I race, I win, and I get creds. It's a simple process, really."

"Mmm-hmm. And out of you're _oh so busy _schedule, are you planning to find the Star Map?"

"Sure. We'll even have enough credits left over to go out to dinner."

Bastila gave him a quizzical smile. "Are you proposing that we go out on date?"

"No way, uh-uh-I'd never do that. I'm just taking you to a fancy resturant and we're going to partake in some nutritional items. If you call that a date, whatever."

She rolled her eyes. "I'll meet you at the loading ramp."

"Hold up, one more thing. I know Manaan's all with the water, but…we won't actually have to…get in it, right?"

"Well, the Star Map is submerged under water so we may have to get a little wet, yes."

He shuddered. "Ugh, me and water do not mix."

"Why not? You do take showers…right?"

"Yeah, but that's just a spray. This whole planet has it all over."

"Just what has made you so apprehensive about water?"

"I'm not apprehensive about it! I just never-"

Kaleb stopped mid-sentence when he realized what he was about to say.

"You just never…what?"

He scratched the side of his arm. "It's nothing."

"Do you know, that when you lie, you start to scratch yourself?"

"Yeah, but it's not when I lie; it's when I get nervous about something. It's a bad tick of mine where I get so damn itchy."

"Why don't you like water?" She asked again.

"Idon'tknowhowtoswim." He mumbled in a fast manner.

"What?"

"Idon'tknowhowtoswim." He mumbled a little louder.

"I still can't understand you."

"I don't know how to swim, alright!" He exclaimed in frustration.

Bastila laughed, not being able to help herself. "You're joking?"

"See, that's why I didn't want to tell you."

"No-no, I'm sorry. It's just that, of all people…" She chuckled. "Can you not swim at all?"

"No…"

"I never would have thought…you're one weakness, the chink in your armor is…water?"

"And now you're making fun of me."

"Well, it's only fair retrubution from all the times you picked on me."

"Right, whatever." He grumbled. "You better not tell anyone else."

"Oh, but why?" She teasingly whined. "It's so very tempting."

"Because it's not manly to not know how to swim."

"Then I suggest you stay away from the railings because it would be worse if someone had to rescue you."

Kaleb winced. "Don't even play around like that."

"Why have you never learned?"

"I never had anywhere to. We didn't have a lot of water on Deraila, so it just wasn't important to me."

"Hmm…well, this is going to be an intereting trip."

"You're so compassionate."

"I've always thought so."

Both went there separate ways as they prepared for the trip.

-----------------------------------

Kaleb put a gray hoodie, hat, medium weight armor just in case of a bad scrap, some weapons, advanced medpacks, and his comlink in his knapsack. The planet was strict, but wasn't about to go unprepared.

"Manaan," He zipped up his bag and put the strap on the side of his neck. "Bring it on."

He had changed into some khaki drawstring pants and a red long-sleeved mesh shirt that clung to his torso.

Kaleb smirked, as he looked himself up and down. "It's got to be illegal to look this good."

He headed to the meeting room and saw Carth eating breakfast and Bastila and Jolee waiting.

"Alright…um…half of crew, we're going to be staying at a hotel and I'm treating. I know everybody's sick of seeing these same metallic walls _every_ _single day_, so I thought we should have a scenery change." Kaleb looked at all of their faces. "Any objections?"

"I like it." Carth commented with a smile. "We could all use some time away from the same thing, and HK can watch the ship."

"Great idea! HK loves to kill things, so it'll jump at the opportunity to destroy anything that comes on the ship that's not us."

"Well, at least he'll finally be put to some kind of good use." Bastila told them.

Kaleb nodded. "Good, that's settled. Bastila, I know you're coming with me, so…Jolee, you wanna join us?"

"Not particularly." The old man said irritably. "You have Carth right here, young and able."

"Yeah, but he went on the last planet, so he gets a break. Besides he's eating breakfast, that by the way Carth, is good because I fixed the dispenser."

The pilot gave him a thumbs-up sign as he ate some more.

"_Fat_." He said jokingly to Carth's eagerness for the food. "It's you're turn, grandpa."

"What about when I was on Kashyyk? Doesn't that count for something?"

"Nope. We met you on that planet and then we had to take you because you knew how to get that shield open. Time to put some more hours in."

Jolee grumbled something about him being old as he went to the ramp.

Kaleb shook his head. "We'll all meet up at the hotel. Carht, you still have your comlink, right?"

"Yeah."

"I'll contact you when we get there, but until then, you can all relax."

"Good luck out there, then."

'I don't need luck this far in the game. It's either gonna happen or…" He smirked. "It's gonna happen."

Bastila smiled as she headed to the ramp. "Yes…unless there's some water around."

Kaleb's eyes widened as Carth looked at him in confusion.

"What was that about?"

He ignored his question and went down the ramp. "I'm gonna kill her!"

The pilot just shook his head and kept eating.

The End 

I was really mad that I had to end this one so soon because if I didn't, it would have been too long. Gosh, I write too much! Anyway, hoped you liked it and review please!


	10. Water, Water, Everywhere!

Thanks again everybody for the reviews! I'm happy that you're enjoying the story so far!

Ok…now we really are on Manaan! And you know what, to tell you guys the truth, this planet was really boring to me until the end because that's when all the good juicy parts come out, but it's my task to keep you well entertained until those moments! You remember when I said there was going to be some personality changing? Yeah…it's happening in this chap.! Pretty much, Bastila's gonna loosen up more around Kaleb and he'll…say things. I'm not gonna give it away people! Stop pressuring me! If you wanna know, you gotta read! And review! Reviewing a great thing too!

Chapter 10 

Kaleb inhaled deeply as he stepped off the loading ramp. "Ah…smell that sweet salty air." His eyebrows furrowed. "I hate it."

Jolee laughed. "I'm not personally fond of it either, kid. Messes up my sinuses, hard enough to breathe as is."

Bastila scoffed. "There's no helping you two. Both of you constantly find the worst in every situation."

Kaleb shrugged. "Hey, it's a gift." He opened the door and saw a sign. "Alright everybody, remember that we're in docking bay 26-C."

"You're asking an old man to remember something?"

He smiled. "Good point. Bastila?"

"Can you not remember something so simple by yourself?"

"I could, but then that's more work for me."

"You have to be the laziest person I've ever seen."

"If memory serves, I was also the vainest person you've ever seen also." The young man opened another door. "Gosh, I'm just racking them up, aren't I?"

She was about to retort, but was cut off by two men arguing.

"You Republic people are so pathetic, sitting around groveling at the table scraps the galatic senators deign to give you." A Sith in a gray uniform said to the Republic soldier. It makes me _sick_."

"The senators work for the good of the whole galaxy, not for individual gain!"

"Ha! Don't make me laugh, you gutless simp! It's the destiny of weak-minded fools like you to be ruled by the strong, like we Sith!"

"I'm warning you! Don't push me or you'll get just what you're asking for!"

"Try it, just try it. I'd love to see you throw the first punch. And with all the cameras around, the Selkath would be all over you inside of thirty seconds. You break their laws; you pay the price, Republic scum! But I can see you're not man enough to back up your words anyway." The Sith scoffed. "If you ever feel like relieving yourself of your worthless existence, feel free to come by our enclave here. We have many, many ways to fulfill your wish."

The Republic soldier groaned as the man walked away.

"Oh, wow." Kaleb said after the show.

The soldier looked at him fiercely. "Yeah, what do you-" His eyes widened in surprise. "Oh! I apologize, Master Jedi, I should not have been rude."

"You can make it up to me by not calling me "Master Jedi." My name's Kaleb. Anyway, you don't have to apologize. You're cranky from that man telling you off."

"No, really, I should apologize. But excuse me for asking Mast-…uh, Kaleb, but if you are not a Jedi, why do you carry the traditional lightsaber?"

Kaleb looked down at the two sabers on his belt. "Oh, these? I stole them from a Jedi I met back on Dantooine and kept them as a souvenir. I'm a smuggler, you see."

The man's mouth was agape with shock as Bastila brushed past her bond-mate roughly.

"Excuse his behavior, he acts so juvenile at times. We are all Jedi that have been assigned a task by the Council. Is there anyone that you know, who could aid us?"

"Uh…there's the Republic diplomat, Roland Wann. I'm sure he can answer all of your questions and help you however he can. He's north from here, then south past the port official and the first courtyard, east into the second courtyard, then north then east again. You got that?"

Kaleb rubbed his eye. "All that just blew right past me."

"I could repeat it again?"

Bastila shook her head. "Thank you, but that won't be necessary. I've got it."

The man nodded. "Have a pleasant stay, Master Jedi." He then left to continue his duties.

She glared at Kaleb. "I mean really, a smuggler? Do you want to be thrown off the planet before we even get started?"

"Well, that would be a world record; but did you see his face!' He laughed. "He looked like he was stuck between alerting the authorities or screaming like a little girl!"

"For you to jeopardize our mission for such a…immature reason is-"

"Hilarious?" He guessed dryly, knowing that she was going to go into lecture mode.

"Stupid!" She exclaimed in anger.

"I'm sorry, Bastila. It will never happen again." Kaleb droned.

She sighed. "Even though it's apparent that you're lying, I can't really do anything about it, can I?"

"Sure can't, but you do get an E for effort."

Jolee snorted. "The two of you arguing so much is making my throat hurt! If this is what I have to look forward to, I'm on ahead by myself."

The old man left them, as both were silent.

Kaleb crossed his arms. "See what you did, Bastila?"

"I did? If you had just done your responsibilities, none of this would have happened!"

He shook his head and walked up to a Selkath that had supplies all around him.

**_/Greetings, human, and welcome to the Ahto City Visitor's Provisional Stand./ _**

"Whew, that was a lot of words! How about I give you an acronym? Hmm…the ACVPS. What do you do?"

_**/I am here to provide visitors with all manners of indigenous treats and products produced right here./ **_

"You here that, Bastila? We're getting first class treatment already!"

"And you must think this is because of your influence."

"I wasn't gonna say that, but sure, why not?" He turned back to the Selkath. "So what else do you do?"

_**/We carry all manner of foods and provisions, and have contacts with resellers across the world to provide you, the customer, with the best shopping experience possible. How is it that I can help you today/ **_

"Well, I would like to know more about Manaan and, who better to tell me than a native of the planet?"

_**/Ah, very true, human. Manaan is the homeworld of we Selkath. It is here that our race has lived and thrived for uncounted millennia. With our valuable supply of kolto, we have become an important player in intergalactic politics./ **_

"The kolto that they have is an very useful for the support of Republic troops." Bastila explained further.

_**/We have taken a neutral stance in the current galatic war between the Sith and the Republic as we believe that violence is not a permanent solution./ **_

Kaleb smiled. "I can agree with that. Better to be neutral than take sides with something you don't believe in."

The Selkath nodded. **_/Is there anything else that I can help you with/ _**

"No, but thanks though. We'll be going now."

_**/Of course. The Ahto City Provisional is here for any additional assistance service. Come again at any time./ **_

As the two resumed walking again, Kaleb couldn't help but notice that Bastila was deep in thought about something.

"A credit for your thoughts." He said as she looked up at him.

"Pardon?"

"Well, you look like you were thinking about something deeply, so I just wanted to know what it was."

She smiled slightly. He was so observant to her expressions, never missing when she wanted to inquire about something.

"I was thinking on that discussion we had earlier about controlling emotions."

"Ah, one of my better speeches." He raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorta confused too. You told me to go to sleep, so we didn't really get into it in more depth."

"Yes, I did end it quite abruptly. Perhaps…a Master could have addressed my concerns with the proper wisdom. But I never should have brought it up here. Not with you."

"Why am I so different that you couldn't discuss this with me?" He asked in a slightly defensive tone.

He had mistaken her comment. She didn't mean to make him feel unworthy of her guidance, but the mission depended on him being in the dark.

_Another dirty secret, I'm forced to hide from him…when would the lying end? _

"I didn't want to discuss it with you because part of my objective was to guide you in the way of the light side and help you avoid the temptations of the dark side. I fear, however, that I have failed in this task."

"No, you haven't." Kaleb told her quickly. "I'm the one who rejected the roles of each side. You being here had absolutely nothing to do with that."

_Idiot! _He thought from his choice of words.

"Not to say that I didn't want you here with me…uh…with us-the crew."

Bastila smiled from his thoughtfulness. "We both know that you are not truly being objective then. Thank you for caring, but there's really no need to spare my feelings on this point."

"I'm not being objective, but trying to show you that nothing could be done. I don't want you blaming yourself for things that you have no control over. Once my mind is made up about something, nothing else can change it. I told you that I'm just a stubborn brat."

"Maybe, but this is still my fault. The fact of the matter is that I have never possessed much skill at controlling myself and with this bond, it seems that I have even less."

Kaleb felt his pulse quicken. _She was losing control too? _

She continued. "You have managed to not fall into any dark patterns, but as you have said, this has been in spite of my influence; not because of it. I don't…think I'm the proper Jedi to guide you. I am no Master. You…should have remained with the Council."

"Why do you say that?" He scoffed. "The Council couldn't have made a difference either way; they would have only served in pushing me further away. You really need to stop faulting yourself. You're just being way too hard on your actions for no reason."

"That is kind of you to say, but I think the evidence speaks for itself. I think…I may have made a very big mistake. I simply hope that you are not the one who pays ultimately, for the fact that I cannot help you enough."

"But you do help me!" Kaleb pleaded; frustrated that she didn't understand what he was saying to her. "You…you help me so much." He paused and looked away from her, knowing that he was on a thin line between being friends or…more than that. One of his legs was on the safe side, while the other was about to step on forbidden ground. Kaleb took the step.

"I mean, look at what you just said. Even through all your worries, you still take time to care about my well-being. Bastila…you always do." He sighed. "You may think that I don't have any doubts or second thoughts, but that's in no way true. I'm always analyzing my decisions, if they were right or wrong, is this going to benefit anybody; things like that. But…you, believe it or not, do help me. I value your opinions and advise, even if it seems like I don't listen or care. There's no way that I could have gotten this mission without you."

Bastila was astounded by his confession. She had not expected this at all…especially when she had done her best to ward him off by revealing her own downfalls and failings. He had denied these, though, comforted her with the reliance and confirmation of his own weakness, as well.

"I just don't understand." He continued. "Even if I don't follow the light side, for you to think that you're irrelevant is the furthest thing from what's true. There were, and still are, countless occasions when you've helped me out of tough spots. Not only in the mission or in fights, but in everyday living as well. I've...grown in all personal and physical levels because of your guidance." He chuckled and shook his head. "You say that I should have a master, but even they could not do what you have achieved so easily."

"You can't…there's no way that you could mean that."

"But I do. I know you'll probably count it off as me being one-sided, but once, you told me that I was respected and admired by you. What in the galaxy makes you think that you're not worthy of receiving the same admiration?"

Bastila was unprepared in every way for his reaction. He had pretty much told her that she was needed…and accepted. For her to be so important in his life…fear of what was becoming and excitement from what could be rose simultaneously. Admiration…the last word he had spoken had so much passion in it. This had given her a sudden rush of elation, but…it was nothing short of amazing that he persevered so. Through every nasty thing that she had said, Kaleb never gave up on her. Even now, he was giving unconditional support and putting himself down so that she would feel better.

"You…you continue to be there for me don't you? Even after I keep pushing you away, you're still around when I need you most." Bastila told him with a mixture a gratitude and pain.

Kaleb eyes widened from shock, but he blinked it away to keep it from showing. The beat of his heart was deafening to his racing thoughts. _Could it be that she does have feelings for me? Maybe…she was starting to consider it? _No…he needed to calm down and have a clear head about the situation.

"I…just try to help where I can. You do the same for me; putting up with my sarcasm and dumbness."

She scoffed light-heartedly. "You're belittling your actions. You make my issues yours and personally do all in your power to make me feel better."

He shook his head, as he avoided a cleaning droid. "I just don't like to see people upset when I'm close to them. If I can do something, anything to make somebody feel comfortable, then that's what I'll do."

She smiled, knowing what he said was true as she fingered the precious necklace he had given her. "Yes…but its much more than that."

Bastila stopped next to the fountain in the visitor's area to force Kaleb to look at her. She took a deep breath, attempting to work up the courage for what she was about to say.

"You're like…no man I've ever known before. I feel so very at ease when I'm around you, talking about many things I wouldn't dream of asking the Council about."

She was about to break contact with his golden eyes, but willed herself on. If she was going to get this off her chest, then there was going to be no acting like a love struck adolescent girl, stammering about with her words.

"You're just so very…contrast from what I thought you would be like."

He chuckled. "What? Please don't tell me that I still haven't lived up to your expectations?"

"Oh no, that's not it." She told him, not wanting him to misunderstand. "It's just that I didn't expect you to act like you do after…"

He saw her hesitate, but it was more out of necessity, than any real apprehension.

"…After the Council sent us on this mission together." She concluded.

Kaleb tried to be serious, but couldn't help but add an amused tinge to his question. "How did you expect me to be?"

Bastila caught his infectious humor and grinned. "I don't know, just…different then you are right now, I suppose. Things are planning to be more adverse than I thought they would be and I…just need some time to think things over."

"Uh-oh. I don't like it when you think because most of the times, it's not good on my behalf."

"Is that why you always try to distract me every five minutes?"

"Every five minutes? That's a little extreme, don't you think?" He smiled. "I think it would be better to say every…two seconds."

She laughed. "Answer the question, Kaleb."

"Hmm…for that and other reasons." He told her mysteriously as he took a coin out of his pants pocket, closed his eyes, blew it three times, and tossed it in.

"What are you doing now?"

"That's my little secret to lord over you until you go crazy with nosiness."

"Mean." She pouted while giving him the most convincing sad face she could muster.

"See, now that's not fair." Kaleb told her with a smirk. "Using the whole sad face against me when you know that's my shtick and then knowing that there's no way I could say no to it."

"And I feel so bad about that, really, I do."

"And you say I'm mean." He laughed. "That was so ignorant without a cause, but what I did was make a wish on this fountain. When I was a boy, Hayden and I use to always wait to the end of the month so we could wish on something we wanted."

"Why at the end of the month?"

"That's when we got our allowance. It wasn't much, but at least we got something. But anyway, we'd blow on the coin the same number as the wishes we wanted."

"What did the two of you wish for?"

"A lot of stuff. Worms, swoop bikes, blasters, but mostly to be able to get off the planet itself."

"Well, you blew on your coin three times…"

"Yup."

"That means you wished for three things…right?"

"You're catching on."

"So…"

"So?"

"What did you wish for?"

"Uh-uh, that's an absolute no-no." He told her while wagging his finger. "The first rule of wishing, never tell anyone what it is until it comes true. Why do you think I told you about the ones I made when I was a kid?"

"When did you get worms?"

"When I dug in the dirt, genius."

"Do you even know how evil you are?"

He grinned. "On scale of one through ten?"

"Go for it."

"Uh…a hundred and five."

"Well, that was only to be expected."

"Be happy. It means I'll tolerate you."

Bastila rolled her eyes. "Do you say that to all the girls?"

"Only the ones I really like. You should be honored."

"I can hardly contain the excitement." She told him cynically.

"I can tell. Don't get too happy now."

"I'll try my best, but enough with trying to distract me from my question. Telling me what you wished for won't make your wishes any worse off."

"Nice try, but the answer's still no. Not telling anyone hasn't failed me yet, so I have no reason to doubt it."

Bastila stared at the cascading water flowing down the piece of metal in the center. "Was one of your wishes about…something on this planet?"

Kaleb blew some air out of his mouth in thought. "I don't see any harm in answering that. Yeah, it was."

"Is it about a…person?"

He smirked coyly. "And the next one will be was it about you."

"No…" She gave him a sideways glance. "But was it?"

"_Mayyyybe_. _Mayyyybe_ not." He said teasingly.

"What kind of answer is that?"

"One that you obviously don't like."

Bastila scooped some water from the fountain and flung it at him.

"Hey!" Kaleb exclaimed as he put his hand up to block the liquid. "What was that?"

She smirked slyly. "Something you obviously didn't like."

He wiped his face off with his shirt. "I hope you know, this means war. I'm gonna get you back when you least expect it." He threatened playfully. "You'll always be wondering when I'm going to strike."

"Oh no, I'm shaking in my boots." She told him dryly. "Kaleb's going to hurt me, oh please, someone help."

"Alright, but don't say I didn't warn you. For now though, let's hurry up and get to that hotel. This cleaning droid is following me around a little too much."

"Who knows? It might like you."

He sighed. "Unfortunately, being irresistible does have its drawbacks."

"Great thing you don't have that problem then, isn't it?"

"But you do." Kaleb told her with a wink.

"Just go talk to the Selkath."

"Bossy, bossy." He said to himself as he walked up to the booth.

**_/Welcome to Manaan./ The post official greeted._** **_/While you are here, I trust you will follow all the rules governing the activities of off-worlders./ _**

"Yeah…I never was good at rules, so why don't you refresh my memory?"

**_/The single most important law on Manaan is very simple. Kolto smuggling is punishable by death. If you are carrying any unprocessed kolto, you better have a permit./ _**He ended gruffly.

"Next?"

**_/The other rule is also simple-keep the peace. Here on Manaan, we maintain a careful neutrality and react very harshly to those who jeopardize our neutral status. Any confrontations between the Sith and the Republic are dealt with swiftly and decisively. Is this understood?" _**

"That's it?" Kaleb asked with disbelief. "Only two laws? I like this planet more already."

**_/Don't be foolish, human! Of course we have laws against murder, theft, and other crimes. But these laws are hardly different from those of any planet. The neutrality is closely linked to our kolto production-that is why I made special mention of the laws regarding smuggling and keeping the peace./ _**

"I'm not judging, I'm curious really; how can you be neutral when the sith are trying to conquer everything?"

**_/The Sith respect the independence of Manaan as much as the Republic does. As long as we continue to control the production of a resource as valuable as kolto, we have no need to fear any conquering fleet./ _**The Selkath told him matter-of-factly. **_/Should Manaan ever come under attack, we would destroy the supply of kolto and vanish beneath underneath the oceans of our world. Even the Sith are not willing to risk the loss of such a precious commodity./ _**

"True, until they find a way to store up enough kolto to last the war and more. One thing that I do understand about the sith, is that they'll do most anything for power."

_**/Even so, there is no way that they could get past us Selkath to collect our kolto. We have strict regulations on how much we register out./ **_

"You're being short-sighted. Whether you want to believe what the sith are capable of or want to just close your eyes to it, won't stop them. They're much craftier than you think."

**_/Your opinion is biased by your alliances, human./ _**He said dismissively.

"And you think that your people are invincible. Hmm…sounds pretty bias to me, but not so much as misguided. Unlike you, alliances have nothing on me. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if the Republic was doing the same thing. One word gets out that one side is getting stronger and the other side goes crazy."

The post official snorted, showing that this conversation was over. **_/There is a docking fee of a hundred credits. You will have to pay this fee ever time you dock on Manaan, or you will not be permitted into Ahto City./ The Selkath said gravely. _**

"Alright, mister sensitive, here's your fee."

**_/The Manaan board of trade and tourism thanks you, off-worlder._** **_Here is a visitor guide and map to the city. Refer to it should you have any questions./ _**

"This is great!" He exclaimed as he took the items from him. "I would have gotten too many kinds of lost in the bigness of this city."

_**/The gates of Ahto City are now open to you. You may come and go as you please, so long as you do not leave this planet./ **_

"Right, right. We have to pay the docking fee if we leave." Kaleb shook his head as he turned back to Bastila. "I tell you, they work for their money, but at least we got a map."

"Why do I have the distinct feeling that you're going to get into a lot of trouble on this planet?"

"Me? I'm a perfectly behaved man."

"More like a mischievous trouble-making boy."

"Hey! I am not a boy!"

She scoffed in incredulity. "So you accept everything else I've said?"

"Yeah." Kaleb told her nonchalantly as he opened the door to Ahto City. "Besides, I bet me being a bad boy gets you all kinds of tingly inside."

"More like gives me a splitting headache."

"P-shaw! Those are all side-effects."

They took their first steps of the city and Bastila sighed in wonderment of the view as she stood against the railing.

"Even with your dislike of water, you must think this view incredible?"

He came a little bit closer, but stayed away from the rails. "It's ok…if you like bottomless pits of death."

"You're so very poetic." She replied cynically as she eyed the magnificent wind whipped ocean once again. It sparkled like millions of beady diamonds from the flattering gaze of the sun.

Kaleb smiled. "Something good happened to you in or near water, didn't it?"

"Again, you read me so easily."

"As only _I_ can."

She rolled her eyes at his comment. "My father use to take me swimming when I was younger all the time." She smiled too as she reminisced. "I would love to race against him in a lake close to our house."

He put a comforting hand on her shoulder, knowing that her father's death had to still be hard on her. "So he taught you how to swim?"

"Yes. I liked to go to the water so much, that he always use to say I was part fish."

Kaleb laughed. "Of course, the one thing that I'm terrible at; you're the best in." He looked out at the view. "I do think the sky is nice though. I've always been envious of the clouds ability to wander anywhere they want, but never in a real rush to go there. They just cruise along and enjoy the beauty of the worlds they visit."

"I take it back. You might just make a poet yet."

He smiled widely as he removed his arm and opened the map. "Alright, let's see…hotel…hotel." Kaleb skimmed through the introduction. "Welcome traveler, to exciting and adventurous Manaan! Manaan is the only source of blah, blah, blah…wonderful place to do business or visit blah…rest easy with Selkath Security Forces stalking and watching us while we sleep…tell friends abut Manaan. Well, that killed ten percent of my brain cells." He turned the page, finally spotting the map. "Uh…if I'm not reading this map wrong, the hotel is right across from the Republic Embassy. Convenient."

"Yes, but after we check into this hotel, we should really talk to this Roland Wann."

He sighed. "Always business, but never pleasure with you."

"Well, I'm sorry for making our mission a priority."

"It's not that, but for once on this journey of ours, we're actually at a nice place. This is the closest we're going to get to a vacation and we definitely deserve some R&R."

"I guess we do deserve a little…we'll relax, but only after we get some information on the Star Map."

Kaleb groaned. "Oh come on, Bastila! We never-wait…_huh_? Did you just say that we could relax?" He beamed. "_Yes_! I'm gonna sleep 'till I can't sleep no more and then I'll turn around and sleep on the other side!"

She grinned. Any other time, in the earlier stages of their mission, she would have given him a lecture about why it was so urgent to get the Star Map, but now…the idea of taking a break with him was more than welcome to her. Kaleb really was starting to "rub off on her" as he had said on Tatooine and she...liked it more and more.

"Um…if the Embassy is on this side," Kaleb said to himself while pointing to the map. "We need to go…left to East Central courtyard. Come on."

Bastila nodded and they walked towards the eastern door.

---------------------------

As soon as the two came back outside, they saw a group of Sith and Republic soldiers glaring and grimacing at each other.

Kaleb sighed. "Here we go."

They got close enough to hear their conversation.

"Your precious Republic's days are numbered!" The leading Sith exclaimed forcefully. "It won't be long until Malak turns his full armada loose on Coruscant itself!"

"Save your empty threats, Sith scum!" The Republic spat back at him with, if not more, venom. "Even Malak isn't stupid enough to attack one of the core worlds-not with the entire Republic fleet waiting for him!"

"You're a fool! When the Sith descend on Coruscant, our numbers will block out the sun itself! The galatic Senators will collapse trembling with fear, and beg for mercy at Malak's feet!"

"You underestimate the Republic's resolve! We'll die before surrender Coruscant!"

"Wonderful, because that's what is going to happen anyway. Remember what happened to Taris- Malak could do the same to the core worlds!"

"He wouldn't dare!" The slightest touch of doubt affecting his remark.

The Sith sniggered. "Now it is you that underestimates our resolve."

Both parties suddenly walked away from each other, knowing that if they didn't, a fight would break out.

Kaleb laughed uproariously. "Well, the Republic's not doing so good. I think the score is sith two, Republic zero." He wiped some tears coming from his eyes. "Whew…ok, I'm good now. Let's go check out the Visitor's Hotel."

"It that what it's called?"

He nodded as they headed to the opening in the back.

"Well, that's not the most ingenious name I've heard."

"Hmm, I like it. It's short, sweet, simple, and to the point."

"It has that going for it at least. I really do hope that it's not dirty."

He shook his head while grinning. "You are so hard to satisfy. I thought you jedi were supposed to adjust, not complain."

Bastila put her hands on her hips. "I resent that! I wasn't complaining, but simply hoping that the place is sanitary."

They turned left and he opened the door. "Only one way to find out."

As soon as the two stepped in, they saw a man pacing behind a counter with a worried expression on his face.

"Hey, are you the owner of this hotel?"

The man looked at Kaleb. "Yeah, I'm the owner, but don't even bother asking for rooms-the hotel's closed."

"You've got to be kidding! Why are you closed down? This place looks fine enough to me."

"Ever since the murder, the Selkath have made me keep this placed locked up tight. Only the Selkath authorities and those authorized by them are allowed in."

"What murder has taken place?" Bastila asked the owner while her companion grumbled about his luck.

"This old Republic war-hero by the name of Sunry was seeing this Sith woman here-Elassa."

"Why would a Republic war-hero see a Sith?" She asked in confusion.

"You'll have to ask somebody else for the details, but if you saw those two come in here…all I'll say is that it doesn't take a genius to know what they were probably doing. Anyway, the other night a blaster went off in one of the rooms. Sunry got seen leaving the place and the Sith was dead on the floor."

"Then case closed." Kaleb told him tersely. "Sunry killed her, he's guilty, so send him to jail."

"But not everybody thinks that Sunry did it, so the Selkath are holding him in prison while the case gets sorted out. In the meantime, though, they closed down my hotel!" The man sighed sadly. "But enough about my problems…you can't stay here while the investigation is on. You'll have to find somewhere else to stay. Sorry."

Kaleb groaned and walked out of the hotel in frustration. "We were so close, but of course, we don't get to stay at the nice hotel!"

"Well, I don't think you would want to sleep anywhere near where a person died."

"Yeah, but…" He whined as he put his index finger and thumb inches apart. "This close!"

"All we can do is continue what we were doing." Bastila saw his disappointed face and sighed. "Who knows? I'm sure there is more than one hotel in such a large city."

He shook his head in disagreement. "Thanks for trying to make me feel better, but…that was the only one on the map." He sighed deeply. "We need to talk to this Roland guy that's next door anyway."

They went into the Embassy and immediately found whom they were searching for doing some paperwork on a desk. He suddenly looked up as Kaleb approached him.

"Uh, welcome to Manaan. I am Roland Wann. As the official representative of the Republic Embassy on this planet, I am here to help all citizens of the Republic should they require aid."

"Well, that's just dandy because aid is exactly what we're looking for. We're on the longest mission in the galaxy from the council, so maybe you can guide us in the right direction. Everybody and their momma kept saying to come to you."

"Um…of course, of course. I will do whatever I can, but I am only a simple diplomatic representative of the Republic. I doubt I can be of any use to the Jedi Council."

"I doubt you could be of use to anybody." He mumbled while Bastila glared at him.

"I'm sorry, he's just taking his bad mood out on everybody. But, you may be more help to us than you think." She told him reassuringly. "While you may only be a diplomat, you know the planet of Manaan much more than we do and that is essential for finding the Star Map that we are searching for."

Roland had a thoughtful expression, but he rapidly shifted it to being baffled. "A Star Map?"

"Yeah, you know," Kaleb jumped in, not liking this guy by the second because he knew he was lying. "Ancient thingy that was dropped off by a forgotten race."

"An ancient and forgotten race…and you think it might be here on Manaan?"

"Believe me, we wouldn't come here if it wasn't."

The diplomat put his hand on his chin in thought. "Hmm…"

"Sounds like you know something about it."

"Well…perhaps."

"Perhaps?" Kaleb said snappily. "You either know something or you don't. It's as simple as that."

"I might know something, but if you want my information, you'll have to do something for me first."

He groaned from complete aggravation. "Always a _friggin' _catch! Never, "Here you go! Oh yeah, you can take this info on the Star Map without going all over the _freakin' _place!" He saw that Roland was about to say something, but cut his response off. "_You'd think _that saving the _galaxy_, that by the way if you didn't notice you _live in_,would be more _important_! But _no_! _My_ calculations must be wrong!" Kaleb took out a chair from another desk, sat in it, folded his hands, and looked directly at Roland. "_Your_ needs are _clearly_ more important than our whole _stupid_ Malak-stopping mission that we've been working on for _months_. But, _we _don't mind because you're _special_!"

Some of the Republic soldiers that were standing around started snickering and Bastila put a hand over her mouth to conceal the amused smile that she was trying to suppress. He had said everything that she was thinking, and couldn't help but wonder if their bond had been open at the time.

The Republic diplomat cleared his throat from obvious embarrassment. "I am sorry that this conflicts with your plans-"

"No you're not." Kaleb said abruptly. "Do me a favor, if we have to do this thing for you, at least spare me your lies."

"Uh…this is of the high most importance."

He scoffed. "If that isn't what they all say. Save the good morality speech and just tell us what we gotta do. Thanks."

"We were using a submersible reconnaissance droid in the ocean surrounding Ahto City and it was…damaged."

"_Suuuure_, it was. But since I really don't care, let's go with that."

"It took a data recording of the outside of the City before being driven off by the fireman sharks." The man told him in his defense.

"Whatever, liar. What happened to it?"

"While it was returning to the surface, it encountered difficulties and was disabled. Its automatic systems floated it to the surface, but we could not retrieve it in time. The Sith were applying subtle pressure to the Selkath authorities for some reason we have not yet determined, and were able to delay us long enough that they could retrieve the droid before we did."

"Oh, I get it now. I'm supposed to be your errand boy and get this droid for you that the sith stole."

"Not so much the droid, but what it's collected. The droid's data centers are heavily encrypted, so it will take the Sith several days, we believe, to get the data. It was captured twelve hours ago and it is imperative that we get it back!"

"Yeah," Kaleb said suspiciously. "It apparently is, but just what is so "imperative" on this recording?"

"It's intelligence information about Sith activities on Manaan, as well as some oceanographic reports on local marine life."

"Hmm…where's the thing at?"

"It is heavily guarded, we are sure, in the Sith Embassy here on Manaan. Since we have no remaining soldiers to spare, and certainly not our elite ones, we have no one capable entering the Sith base and retrieving it."

"Aw, look Bastila, he's trying to flatter. Whoop dee doo! We're the only ones capable enough to get inside a heavily guarded base! He won't risk his elite soldiers, oh no, but he'll certainly put our lives in danger."

"No one has said that you had to do this." Roland Wann replied uncouthly, getting irritated with Kaleb's antics. "But this is what we would ask of both of you."

The young man snorted offensively. "I don't need you to tell me what I already know. I don't want to do your dirty work, but I think everyone here can tell that's not an option for us. Now you can pretend to be all nice and smug knowing that I have to do what you're telling me, for the Star Map…for now. Don't forget who has to bring the module back in one piece or whose hands it could…accidentally slip into." He stood up with a stony expression on his face and a dark fierceness in his bright eyes. "Since I'm not evil, I won't rampage through you're mind until I've found what I've wanted and then leave you cowering in a corner. But, for your safety in mind, I suggest you stop treating me like a kid. Now. Tell me how to get into the base." He commanded as he sat back down.

Roland's eyes widened in shock that a Jedi would act that way, but he quickly recovered and did as he was told. "There…are several leads we have been working on to get into the Sith base. Any of them should work for you, although it might be best to concentrate your efforts on one." The diplomat sat behind his desk. "The first method that's possible is to help interrogate a Sith prisoner we managed to catch after he tried to infiltrate our base. He is being held just inside our enclave. We think he may be able to give us the passcode that the Sith give their informers to enter the base." Roland sighed. "He has proved most resilient so far…"

"Personal problem-next?"

"We managed to pick up a crate of blank Sith data cards; the type they use for passcards. To encrypt them has been very difficult however, but if you think yourself more skilled than our technicians," He told him with sure doubt in his comment. "You may be able to gain access that way."

"I don't need to hear the other ones," Kaleb said coarsely, not liking the fact that the diplomat said it like it couldn't be done by him. "That's what I'm gonna do."

Roland grinned from the young man's pride. Maybe that spirit would help him decode the cards, but when it didn't, it would help knock him down a few pegs.

"Good choice." He congratulated, still grinning. "Like I said, we've been working on it for a while now, but maybe…you'll have better luck."

"Don't need it." He pointed to his head. "It's all up here."

"Right…I hope you fare well in your task. Should you receive the data recording from the droid, return it to me and we can see about getting you that information."

Kaleb smirked. "Now, since we're such good friends; maybe you could do something to help me out. It's the _least _you could do."

"Go ahead."

"Well, my crew and I need somewhere to stay on the planet, but the hotel is closed for some murder. You did say that you would assist in anyway possible, so how about giving us some lodgings for the duration of the time we spend here?"

"Of course. There are plenty of rooms in this enclave that we can let you and your crew use."

"Great. That's one of my problems that you've actually solved today. Feel special."

"Is that all?"

"Yup. I'll get on that computer job now."

He nodded and Kaleb walked away while taking his comlink out of his pocket and turning it on.

"Hey, Carth?"

There was a short burst of static, but then the pilot appeared on the gray screen. _"Kaleb, what's up?" _

"Change of plans. The hotel is closed down from a murder, so we're going to be staying at the Republic Embassy instead. Do you need directions?"

"_Yeah. I'm in the cantina-it's on the western side of Ahto." _

"_Oooh_, that's a pretty long walk for you. The Embassy's in East Central, then you go all the way down into the opening, and take a right."

"_You know, you have to be the worst at giving directions. Where's East Central?" _

"Oh, forget it. We'll just come and get you."

"_See, you just saved yourself five minutes." _

"Smartass."

He laughed. _"Do you need any help?" _

"Nope, just telling you what's going on in my life. Where's everyone else?"

"_Mission and Zalbaar went exploring, Canderous is…somewhere, Juhani is still on the ship, and I saw Jolee talking to some woman." _

"The old dog. I knew I liked him."

Carth chuckled. _"No, I don't think it was anything like that; at least I didn't look that way…the woman seemed distressed about something and he was trying to help." _

"Jolee? Helping someone? Elaborate, please."

"_Maybe he still has a little Jedi in him left after all." _

"Maybe…anyway I gotta go save this Embassy's behinds, but we'll pick you up later."

"_That's right," _Carth told him with a smirk as he raised his glass._ "Bastila is with you too. I know you're having great alone time with her." _

Kaleb sniggered while Bastila rolled her eyes and snatched the comlink away from him.

"Goodbye, Carth." She snapped the device shut before he could say anything else. "Men. You can't live with them; can't throw them all out into space and call it a day."

"Aw, you don't mean that." He said, his smirk growing. "Don't take it the wrong way, Carth was just playing around." He opened the door. "Besides, I am having a great time with you. I consider the rest of the crew family, but hanging out with you is by far the best." Kaleb poked his lip out. "You don't like spending quality time with me?"

"Well…times with you are…entertaining."

"Yes, I'm very adept at that craft. It's one of my many good traits."

"Many?"

"Yup, and you're about to see another right now."

He opened the computer room door and a man immediately started talking to him.

"So you're the one who's going to try to get into the Sith base, huh?"

"That's the plan."

"Heh. Good luck. You're gonna need it." The soldier walked back into the room. "This is our main computer room here. We've got the box passcards we got from the Sith, but we haven't been able to break their encryption yet."

"Clearly."

"We've been able to decode the numeric system they use, but there are holes in our terminal sequence patterns."

"What kind of holes?"

"The encryption system is composed of six 'matrices'. Each is based on a mathematical method."

"Ugh, I was never good at math. All that, if Billy has four pet gizka and Sally has two, how many will they have all together? Why can't they just play with the damn gizka like any other kids would? I mean really, have ever seen any kids count their pets with their friends?"

Bastila scoffed. "Just tune him out; I always do."

"Hey!"

The soldier smiled. "Uh…the holes we're missing are the final number in each of the strings. Most are simple, but the final two matrices seem to be much more difficult."

"How's that?" Kaleb asked.

"The second and the last matrix has a pattern looping back on itself, or something, and the last is divided into smaller subparts. Maybe the pattern for that is within each part…but I have to admit, this all of this is a bit over my head. I haven't even been able to slice past the first matrix and I've been at this for hours."

"Hours! Woah…" He told him sarcastically, but the techncian didn't seem to catch on.

"Yeah, I've ruined dozens of cards already…but the good thing is that we have a whole box of them. You won't have to worry about running out anytime soon."

"So…can I get started?"

"Oh, sure. Since Roland said you were cleared, you can use the computer freely. I'll be her if you have any questions." The man went to the corner computer.

"Alright, this sounds pretty simple to me. Except for the math part, but I'll get to that bridge when I cross it."

"Don't you mean, you'll cross that brigde when you get there?"

"Yeah…that's what I said."

Bastila scoffed. "Are you sure you want to do this? No one else herre could get the code."

"Well, no one in here has my skills…'cept you, but we have a bond so you don't count."

She sighed as he got a card out of the box and accessed the main computer.

"Alrighty gee bob! Let's see what we got here…"

The computer flickered to life.

_SYSTEM BOOTING…STATUS PENDING…LOADING RE-OP LAYER…SUCCESS. _

_COMMAND QUERY? _

Kaleb chose decrypt Sith passcode.

_LOADING DECRYPTION LAYER…SUCCESS. _

_ACESSING ADDICTIVE MATRIX…_

_TERMINAL SEQUENCE- _

_1, 2, 4, 7, 11, 16. _

"_One, two, four, seven, eleven, and sixteen…what do they have in common?" _Kaleb thought. _"I know each of them have to do with their matrix and this one's addittion so…something needs to be added. Hmm…to get to one to two would be plus one, and two to four would be plus two…that's it! Each of the numbers goes up by one! So that means…sixteen plus six is twenty-two." _

He plugged in his answer.

_TERMINATING ADDICTIVE SEQUENCE…_

"_Yes! Ok, one down." _

_ACCESSING SUBTRACTIVE MATRIX…_

_TERMINAL SEQUENCE -_

_21, 18, 16, 15, 15, 16. _

"_Twenty-one, eighteen, sixteen, fifteen, fifteen, and sixteen. At first it looks like it subtracts by three and then decreases down by one, but…the fifteens mess it up! Damn fifteens to hell!" _He internally groaned. _"Hold on…if there are two fifteens that means…the pattern has to reverse. This could be a two-step where the fifteen is subtracted by zero and added by one to start the chain all over again. If I'm right…the answer should be eighteen." _He pushed in the number and there was a pause.

_TERMINATING SUBTRACTIVE SEQUENCE MATRIX…_

Kaleb exhaled. _"Whew, that one was serious." _

_ACCESSING MULTIPLACATIVE MATRIX… _

"_Heh, I've got this one. I've always loved to multiply…" _He thought deviously.

_TERMINAL SEQUENCE- _

_1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32. _

He chuckled._"Too easy. Sixteen times two is thirty-two, so thirty-two times two must be the product." _Kaleb punched in sixty-four.

_TERMINATING MULTIPLACATIVE MATRIX… _

"_Gosh, I could I be any smarter!" _

_ACCESSING DIVISIVE MATRIX…_

"_I hate division! It's such a bastard!" _

_TERMINAL SEQUENCE-_

_128, 64, 32, 16, 8, 4. _

"_What? You've got to be kidding me-this is the easiest one!" _He selected the answer two.

_TERMINATING DIVISIVE MATRIX…_

"_Mission's going to have to find something else that she's good at if I keep this up." _

_ACCESSING EXPONITIAL MATRIX… _

"_Alright, I can do exponents. They're like leaps of multiplication." _

_TERMINAL SEQUENCE-_

_1, 32, 81, 64, 25. _

"_What the hell? How do these match up? 1, 32, 81, 64, and…25." _Kaleb gasped. "1, 2, 1, 4, 5...the last digits on the numbers are all odd and even. That means that the next one has to be even if it's a pattern." He scanned his choices. _"Lucky, there's only even number in here. That makes me feel a little bit more confident. Six." _

_TERMINATING EXPONITIAL SEQUENCE…_

"_Oh, now I'm just showing off." _

_ACCESSING LOGARITHMIC MATRIX… _

"_Loga-who?" _He asked in complete confusion. _"What in the galaxy is that?" _

_TERMINAL SEQUENCE PAIRS-_

"Pairs?"

_1 0 - 8 3- 32 5 - 128._

"_The numbers don't make sense, but now there's spaces too? One space zero, eight space three, thirty-two space five, and one hundred twenty eight-no spaces." _Kaleb counted the spaces. _"One number in front, one number in front, two numbers in front, and then none. It still doesn't add up." _He chuckled. _"Heh, heh. Add up…I'm doing math and that's a math joke. Um…focus! I need to find this out." _He looked at the numbers again and shook his head. _"Each number had the odd number pattern. 1, 3, 5, but no 7. That was the next number down and I don't have anything to lose. There were plenty of more cards and I know the answers to all the other questions, but…wouldn't it be cool if I got it the first time? Everyone else had such a problem with it, but I figured it out so easily." _He smirked and chose seven; waiting what seemed like hours for the evaluation.

_TERMINATING LOGARITIHMIC MATRIX…_

_CARD REPROGRAMMING…_

_SUCCESS. _

_LOADING REP-OP LAYER…_

_SUCCESS. _

_COMMAND QUERY? _

_LOG OFF. _

Kaleb turned to Bastila and raised the card between his two fingers. "I am a too much of a genuis!"

"You got the information with just one try?"

"Did you expect anything less? I'm too smart for my own good."

"Well, I am impressed that you didn't blow the computer up."

He smirked. "That was a compliment…_uh_…almost."

"Yes, almost. Don't let it go to your head; you won't be able to fit it through the door."

"Me let my head get big?" He winked with a flirtatious grin. "No way, but really, are you impressed?"

"As a matter of fact, I am."

He was absolutely flabbergasted from her confession. "_I've_ impressed _you_?"

Bastila smiled. "Oh yes. It's most impressive that you didn't just kick the computer and leave."

Kaleb groaned. "You're still on that? Man, you kick a computer once and you're branded for life!"

The Republic technician came over with a mixture of shock and amazement on his face. "I can't believe that you got it in only one try! It took most of us hours to slice the encyption on those cards and here you go finishing it in less than thirty minutes!"

"It was just a couple of math problems that you had to think out of the box on." Kaleb told him coolly.

"Yeah, but you still did a great job! Hey, they change those cards pretty regularly, so you'll have to use it soon or not at all."

"Thanks for the advice."

The man nodded and went back to what he was doing.

"I guess that means we have to get to their base right away, then." He told Bastila, slightly upset.

"According to the technician, the sooner the better."

"Yeah, no break…but at least I'm comforted by the fact that we're going to ruin Carth's good time."

"Now you're just being bitter."

"Well…if you want to be a saint about the situation, we could always get HK…"

"Ugh, anyone but that droid. Tell Carth that we're coming."

"That's what I thought." Kaleb opened his com and pressed the contact button. "Carth…buddy?"

"_Yeah?" _

"We're coming over there to pick you up now. We need you to come raid a sith base with us."

"_We've got to raid a Sith base again?" _

"I know right. Bring back all kind of fuzzy memories from Taris, but this time, Bastila can actually come with us."

"_One Jedi, a rebel with Force powers, and a soldier…sounds like a good combo to me." _

"I've thought so. We'll be at the cantina before you can finish your next drink."

"_Wanna make that a bet?" _

"Of course I do. Less than five minutes and you're drink won't be finished."

"_Deal, and I would hurry up." _He gulped down his ale and called the bartender.

Kaleb grinned as he closed the comlink and secured it back in his pant's pocket.

"Everything's set. Let's go."

Bastila nodded and, before they left the compound, he gave a confident smirk with the card in his hand to Roland.

_-------------------------------- _

Kaleb opened the door as they went through the walkway. Another door was opened and they arrived in Ahto West, spotting Jolee talking to some woman upon their arrival.

"Hey, old man."

The old Jedi turned around. "Kid? Good-you're here."

"Since when have you've been so happy to see me?" Kaleb asked warily.

"This woman right here is the wife of my old friend Sunry. She's told me that he's been accused of murder."

"Is that the same murder that has shut down the hotel?" Bastila inferred.

Elora nodded sadly. "That's were they're saying it happened, but it's all a mistake! Sunry isn't a murderer-someone is trying to frame him."

"Is he still in jail?"

"Yes, and the Selkath aren't letting anyone in there to see him. Please, go to the courts and talk to the judges. Maybe they'll listen to you."

"Don't worry, Elora." Jolee assured her. "We'll get to the bottom of thisand help Sunry…somehow."

"Um, old man?" Kaleb asked in a forced calm voice. "Could you come over her for a sec?"

Jolee walked over to him. "Yes?"

"This woman is _your _friend, so you help her out. Bastila and I already have stuff to do."

"So you and your girlfriend can't help us out after you're done?" The old man asked irritably.

"First off all, she's not my girlfriend; just a friend that's a girl. Second, I'm not saying that I won't help you-just not now. Go ahead and talk to the judges for me and I'll be back as soon as I can. Give me an hour, two tops."

Jolee nodded and went off to the courts.

The young man sighed tiredly as Bastila walked over to him. "This is gonna be a busy mission, I can tell."

"Probably, but you shouldn't overdo it." She told him in concern.

"You know me. Boundless energy and always looking for a way to get two or more things done at the same time."

"That's exactly what I'm talking about. You'll stress yourself out by doing that."

"Hmm…maybe, but I bet everybody's a little stressed from being on this mission for so long." He smiled. "You can take a break if you're tired, Bastila. You've put in as much time as I have and I wouldn't want you to burn out."

"Thank you, but I'll be alright. You look like you could use it more anyway."

"I guess..."

"I wish you could see, just once, the importance of your own physical state."

He sighed again. "I promise that we're still going to have our break, but right now, we should find Carth."

Kaleb headed toward the cantina and Bastila shook her head followed him.

He almost always tended to put others before himself. Letting the rest of the crew relax while he worked on the mission, finding them another place to stay, and constantly helping them with their problems. She was worried though. Most of the time, he never took it easy himself and she didn't know the last time he slept without being awakened by visions.

"Aw, man!" Kaleb's exclamation broke her out of her reverie. "He finished his drink!"

Carth waved to them as he got up from his side table and Kaleb was going to meet him halfway, but a Selkath stopped him.

_**/Human, I wish to speak to you if you have the time./ **_

"Uh…sure."

**_/Thank you, human. My name is Nilko Bwaas. I hope you are enjoying yourself here in Ahto City. Our floating city is beautiful, is it not?" _**

"Yes, it is, but I have to say I'm surpised that you're even talking to me. You're a lot more friendly than most of the Selkath here."

_**/I am afraid you speak the truth, human. My people are suspicious of outsiders; they fear the destruction of our planet./ **_

Kaleb nodded. "And it is not unfounded. It seems that we outsiders only bring war and destruction in our wake. Who in their right mind would want the same fate?"

**_/Ah, a very wise assumption, human. The beauty of Manaan is delicate. Our ecosystem is complex and fragile, and I fear_** **_for the preservation of my planet./ _**

Carth stood next to his friend, but Kaleb continued.

"Any true native of their homeworld would feel the same."

_**/Yes. There is a task I would ask, human…Je-/ **_

He groaned. "Please don't say jedi. My name is Kaleb."

Nilko nodded. **_/I can understand this. You wish to be known by your charcter instead of your rank. Very well. Kaleb, I fear there is nowhere else I can turn./ _**

"What do you want me to do?"

_**/Rest assured, there will be ample reward for this. I only require info, nothing more./ **_

"Well, that depends on what you want info on."

_**/The Republic has been hiring mercenaries-many more than usual. As an official of the Selkath people, this is of great concern to me. I only seek the reason for this change in Republic policy./ **_

"So why do you need me for this?"

**_/I cannot trust anyone else./ _**The Selkath told him simply. **_/The Republic obviously wants to keep their secret-I have inquired often as to their purpose and have been rebuffed. The Sith cannot be trusted to give me an accurate report of events-they will twist the truth so that it further's their own goals./ _**

"What about the mercs themselves?"

_**/I have thought of this, but they are well aware of the high wages the Republic is paying-they would not report anything that might slow the flow of credits into their accounts./ **_

"Wow-that is a problem."

**_/Yes, but if you can recover the truth behind the Republic's actions; I will pay you five-hundred credits./ _**

"I doubt the Republic would be involved in such a twisted plot," Bastila said to Kaleb. "But there's no harm in checking on it to assure him of this."

"I'm uncomfortable spying on the Republic…" Carth argued. "But, like Bastila said, we can assure the Selkath that they mean no harm; then perhaps it might be worth it."

"And what if the Republic does mean harm, Carth?" She asked him in a clipped tone. "Will you tell them?"

"If the Republic does mean harm to the Selkath, then I want to know what the Selakth did to provoke it."

"How very noble of you." She replied in cold sarcasm.

**_/Please-/ _**Nilko pleaded. **_/see if you can find the answers I seek. Find why the Republic is hiring so many mercenaries; find where they are going. Find why they do not return./ _**

"Question." Kaleb told him after his speech. "I know there has to be someone that you know who you trust more than me. I'm not a jedi, and I've never really liked the Republic, but I still belong to them. I could easily be bias just to get your money."

**_/You are quite right, but what you have just said has ended my doubts. Anyone who had just wanted my credits wouldn't have asked me the question you presented. In truth, you do have roots with those I have information on and I would have been worried when you left here, but you disconnect yourself from the Republic. Also, in the beginning of our conversation, you had not only said or argue against the caution we Selkath feel is rightfully placed, but included yourself in the blame of the destruction humans bring. That was a most unbiased answer, wouldn't you agree?/_**

Kaleb smiled. "Yeah, I would. I'll look into it for you, Nilko. If the Republic didn't do anything, then they'll be fine. If they did, well, let the chips fall where they may."

**_/Once you discover some information, please come speak to me. Believe it or not, I am a friend of the Republic. Whatever the truth, I shall do my best to protect the Republic's interests-and those of the Selkath of course./ _**

"Then I have to thank you for your kindness because it is obvious that either side doesn't deserve it."

Nilko nodded and the group walked further into the cantina.

"Well, that's another priority to add to the list." Kaleb told them. "But hopefully that's all-" He saw a Selkath approaching them. "Oops. Spoke too soon."

_**/Greetings, human. My name is Shaelas./ **_

"Well, it can never be said that Selkath don't have manners. What do you need, Shaelas?"

_**/I have heard that you are no friend of the Sith. Is that true/ **_

"My allegiances are my own business."

**_/You are wise to be so guarded, human, but my sources are rarely wrong. They have informed me that you are no friend to Malak's people./ _**

"Well, if they stopped trying to kill me and my friends on sight we might have a cup of tea."

_**/Though I suspect we have little in common, human, I share your dislike of the Sith. They have brought nothing, but grief to my family. I am no fool, I know the Sith do not respect our laws as the Republic does. Were it up to me, I would do everything in my power to aid the Republic in the war against Malak./ **_

"Well, it's good to see at least one Selkath in favor of the Republic." Carth told him.

Shaelas nodded. **_/But intergalactic policies stay my hand. Still, I know the Sith are evil-and I fear what they will do to my people. And what they might do to my people. And…what they may be doing now./ _**

Kaleb was confused. "What are they doing now?"

_**/Many of the Selkath have vanished, human. Most who have gone missing are on the cusp of adulthood, the youth who will someday lead this planet. My own daughter, Shasa, is amoung those who have disappered./ **_

"So that's why you're so adament about the issue."

_**/Yes. These disappearances concide with the arrival of the Sith, and I cannot dismiss the connection. The Sith are up to something, human. Something sinister-I can feel it/ **_

"And, summary, you want me to check out what happened to those young Selkath?"

_**/I will give you five hundred credits if you can uncover the fate of my daughter and the other missing Selkath youth. Not much, but all I can afford. I have no official authority in this matter, and my personal wealth is not vast./ **_

"You Selkath are sure quick to offer money. Do you perhaps think that all humans hold such value or pleasure for it? Could it be that I just want to help you out of the kindness of my heart?"

_**/I meant no disrespect, human, but whatever your motives, I can turn to no one else. The Republic agencies are too closely watched by the Sith, and the Ahto City Authorities cannot act without proof of Sith involvement./ **_

"Sure, I'll look in on it, Shaelas."

_**/I cannot imagine where to begin the investigation, though I suspect the Sith did not act alone. If you uncover the fate of my daughter-/ **_

"Contact you, I know." Kaleb told him as he started to leave. "Come on guys, before someone else wants help with something."

The three left the cantina and headed for Ahto East.

-----------------------------------

The group was about to go down the Ahto East street, but a Sith woman called out to them.

"Hey-this street is for Sith only! You got to pat a twenty credit toll to walk down this street."

Kaleb scoffed. "You say that this street is only for sith, but I'm pretty sure that's a Selkath talking behind you and this was _their_ public planet. Now if he tells me not to walk on this street, then we'll have something to talk about."

The woman glared at him. "Hiding behind Selkath laws-typical Republic cowardice!"

He smirked. "I can assure you, I run from nothing or no one. But since you're so confident, let's see collect twenty credits from a coward's cold dead hands."

"Hmph! You talk big-but remember what we did to Taris. Maybe you're next on our list."

Kaleb laughed, which caused her to scowl. "It's cute how you sith _runts_ think that you destroyed Taris together! The only one who has the shame of doing that is Malak, and since you're clearly not him, I suggest you put your little list away and go back to what you were doing."

She was about to retort, but he raised his hand to silence whatever she was going to say.

"Oh, an thanks for letting us have a freebie today. Real upstanding of you."

As they walked away, Carth let out the laugh he was holding in and Bastila shook her head.

"I knew it."

"Oh, come on! You know that it was funny that he made her feel stupid." Carth told her when he caught his breath.

"Hilarious even." Kaleb added with a smile. "I know there's no rule against laughing at sith?"

"No, but when we are about to sneak into their base, we don't want to make any more enemies."

"I wasn't even trying to this time. She started the conversation and I just finished it. Besides, everybody's gonna be our enemies in this base no matter what I do."

The three took a left.

"What?" He taunted playfully. "You scared of being put on their list?"

"Of course not. I agree that we shouldn't have to pay the twenty credits, but it could have been handled more discreetly."

"Discreet is what we need in that base. I was being…assertive."

"Is that what you call it?"

"Yup. That's my excuse and I'm sticking with it, dammit."

"There the two of you go, having your little lovers quarrel." Carth told the two jokingly.

"We are not having a "lovers quarrel!" Bastila told him crossly.

"Yeah, just a regular one!" Kaleb said with feigned anger and then laughed, not being able to keep up the act. "But really, we do need to hurry this job up. I'm really starting to get hungry because some of us didn't eat breakfast-Carth." He said accusingly.

The pilot scoffed. "There's this place back over at West Central that has the best-"

"Carth and Kaleb!" Bastila exclaimed, mad that they were becoming distracted so easily.

"Yeah?"

"Hello?"

"Talk about the food later. We're going into the base-now." She walked away while Kaleb saluted.

"_Yes, my liege_."

Carth chuckled. "What's wrong with her?"

"Well…she could still be mad about that lovers comment you made earlier. You know she's not good with jokes."

The older man nodded as they followed Bastila into the opening.

When the group entered the room, they saw four war droids and a Sith man at a desk.

"_Alright_." Kaleb whispered to his two companions. "_Let's just play this cool. I'm gonna act all evil._"

He walked up to the Sith diplomat with a funky sway.

Bastila sighed and put her hand on her forehead. "_He's such an idiot_." She whispered.

Carth sniggered. "_Yeah, but he's our idiot._"

Kaleb reached the desk. "Hey man, how ya doing?"

The Sith gave him a quick glance. "Only people with business with the Sith are allowed inside the Embassy." He replied lazily.

"Ah, but I do have business with the sith. They've even given me this passcard."

"If you have a passcard then why are you bothering me? Just go in."

"I knew that! I was just…testing you to see if you knew what you were doing, but you do so I'm gonna go in now."

The diplomat looked at him like he was an imbecile, but went back to his work. Kaleb gave the thumbs-up sign to the party and Carth had a crooked smile on his face, while Bastila was rubbing her temple with her eyes closed. The young man put the passcard in the slot and the door swooshed open. The group went inside and in the elevator.

----------------------------------

A lady called them out automatically when she saw exit the elevator.

"You there! I don't regonize you! How did you get in here?"

"Well…" Kaleb started with a grin. "First I used my passcard, then the doors opened, we went inside, and then the elevator took us down, we met you, and then you started demanding things like crazy."

"You're passcard is out of date! And I don't regonize you at all!" She sat back down in her seat. "We'll get to the bottom of this soon enough!"

"Hold up." Kaleb commanded calmly. "In all truth, we're going to raid this base and kill a lot of you sith in the process. Now, I could kill you before you contact whomever it is you're about to call or I can let you go without a scratch. What's your choice?"

The woman glared at him, but came from behind the desk. "I won't tell anybody, but you have to promise not to start until I'm out."

He nodded. "Sure."

She ran into the elevator and the doors closed on her.

Kaleb smirked. "Another possible fight avoided by my excellent persuasive skills. I should have a freakin' theme song."

"We're not out of this yet…" Bastila warned. "So I suggest you don't become too smug. This is only the beginning."

"Yeah, but what a great start!"

She scoffed. "Can anything penetrate that thick head of yours?"

"Uh…I'm very agreeable to bribes."

Carth chuckled as Kaleb and Bastila went down a hallway.

"_Dum, dum, diddle_." The young man hummed, as he was about to open the door.

"Kaleb, shut-up." Bastila ordered.

"I don't know what you're talking about so I'm gonna open the door now, crazy lady."

He continued to open the door and saw a mine on the other side.

"_Diddle, diddle, dum, dum._"

"_Dum, diddle, dee_." Carht completed.

Kaleb grinned. "Nice!"

"Are the two of you oblivious that we're in a Sith base?"

"Yes, Bastila, and you're not helping by yelling." He told her with a fake glare. "We're surrounded by enemies, if you didn't notice, and I'm gonna have to ask you to take your tone down. This is not the time, nor place for it."

"_Ugh_!" She grabbed her fingers through the air like she was strangling someone.

"I just want to-"

"Give me a present? Buy me lunch? Um…play pazzack?"

"Dump you into an open ocean and leave."

"Well that's just rude."

Carth had finished disabling the mine and stood up. "Alright, all clear."

"Great job." Kaleb told him as he passed a door on the left and walked down to the other door.

He paused. "Did you ever get that feeling that somebody really bad is going to happen?" The door opened and saw about ten Sith in the room all staring at them.

Kaleb flicked out his dual sabers. "What I tell you?"

He jumped the turned around Sith captain that was working the console and killed him instantly. Two troopers turned their guns on him, but he richocted the blast back at them managing to take one down. The other, more skilled trooper took out a vibrosword and stepped back, making sure there was ample distance between them. He was stopped, however, in mid-movement and suddenly levitated through the air, spinning violently.

Kaleb grinned. "Thanks, Bastila."

She nodded as she blocked sliced through her own man's neck. He took this opportunity to throw on saber at the suspended trooper managing to pierce him through the back and use the other to deflect blaster bolts.

Carth saw that the two were handling their guys pretty well, but saw two war droids blasting at them. He took out an ion grenade and threw it at them just as they started to shoot at him. The two devices exploded in a surge of electrical energy as they lay on the floor with wires everywhere.

"Man, I love grenades!" Kaleb exclaimed as he wiped the sweat of his brow. "They're so destructive!"

Bastila bent down to the man that she had cut down and took out a datapad.

She skimmed through it. "It seems to be the water pump analysis. It says…that we have to find the correct sequence of water in each room or we could flood ourselves. Unfortunately, this is the only way we can get to the north sectors."

Kaleb was checking the computer's camera servalliance.

"According to this, the droid's on this floor in the disassembly room, but…the training room is to the north."

"Why do we need to go to the training room?" Carht asked him.

"Well, that's the one place were those Selkath kids might be. Either way though, we need to get through there."

"I'll make a path through the doors." The pilot volunteered. "You two can get the droid and by the time you're done, we can go on."

"Alright, but be careful." Kaleb told him. "We've come to far to lose you in a stupid flood contorl system."

He nodded and started to get to work on the water pumps while the others went to the north doorway. Bastila opened the doorway and they came face to face with two dark Jedi.

"What are two Jedi doing here?" A shorter man who didn't even have his customary robes yet, asked frightened.

"Silence, apprentice!" His master told the adolescent Sith with a cold stern voice. "All that you need to know is that they are spies and must be killed!"

"Well, isn't this great?" Kaleb told them as he yawned. "If you don't mind, could we maybe hurry this up? I'm tired and hungry-not a good combination."

"Do not waste your breath, Jedi!" The apprentice exclaimed as he took out his short saber and powered it. "You can rest all you want when you die!" He dropped into an all-offensive stance and charged at him.

"Fool." Kaleb said in a coldness Bastila had only heard once; when he was Revan. As he powered one of his sabers and swiftly knocked the young man's saber with so much force, that it fell out ofhis hands. Before the boy could scramble to get it, he held the saber at his throat. The apprentice's eyes widened in fear, but Kaleb used his elbow to jab him hard in the gut. She cringed as the boy wheezed and his eyes rolled to the back of his head as he slumped to the ground unconscious.

"Don't worry." He said as he turned to look at her. "He's gonna be out for at least an hour, but he should be ok." He looked back at his master. "I can tell that he hasn't been trained for long since he's so young, so maybe he'll re-think the whole sith thing. Learn something else besides charge in and die."

The Dark Jedi growled. "He was weak, Jedi! A mere shell of my power! I'd have perfered if you did kill him, so then when I destroy you, I wouldn't have to waste my time killing him myself."

Bastila powered her double lightsaber while throwing the man a disgusted glare. "Then let us not waste your time by talking."

Kaleb twirled his sabers. "Ooh, little tip, man. It's not a good thing if you piss a jedi off."

The Dark Jedi sneered as he took out his own crimson double saber. "Come and get me then!" He exclaimed as his fingers pulsed with electricity and threw the barrage of lightning at Bastila.

She rapidly rolled out the way of his attack, but the young man jumped at him to give her some recovery time. The two men's sabers clashed as sparks rainned down from either side. Kaleb, who had each of his sabers, locked on each of the sides of the Dark Jedi's, loosened force that he was pushing on him wanting him to think he was weakened. The man took advantage of this and moved his upper body forward to strike him down, but Kaleb smiled and twisted his torso to avoid his attack and fell on his knees.

"It's all yours."

The Master was confused by his remark, but didn't have much time to revel on it as Kaleb twisted his body back around and swept one of his sabers through his leg. The Dark Jedi's face contorted in so much pain that he couldn't even react, but saw a yellow saber headed straight toward his neck. He tried to fall to his good side, but Kaleb kicked him hard in the kneecap causing him to lose his balance as the double saber cut through sensitive sking near his throat. The Master's pupils dilated as his death welcomed him and his lifeless boddy fell to the ground.

"Alright, that was sorta hard." Kaleb told his bond-mate as he deactivated his sabers. "I'd guve him a four and a half."

Bastila scoffed as she called her aber to her hand. "That's all?"

"That's all he deserves. Did you see the teamwork we had back there? All with the me taking out his legs and then you getting his neck. And I was all like, do it again!" He smiled widely. "But for real though, we're practically invincible."

"Practically being the key word in your sentence."

"Bah!" He exclaimed confidently. "None, of these bastards are going to take me out! At least…until I get to Malak."

She eyed him strangely. "What do you mean by that?"

"Well, I know that Malak is super strong so even if we both fight against him; he may still very well win."

"How could you say that?" She asked him, suddenly getting upset.

"I'm just trying to be realistic here. I mean, to me, this is pretty much a sucide mission."

Bastila tried her best to give him a determined expression. "The Council wouldn't send us on this mission if they thought we wouldn't be able to accomplish it."

Kaleb started to search through the dead Dark Jedi's belongings. "Right. All their calculations on our quest, but did they research the pain that we'd go through?"

"Well, of course, they could not see every single that that has transpired. They had told us how difficult it would be, though."

He scoffed. "Oh yeah, they gave us plenty of warning, but then rushed us off as fast as they could. I said this was a suicide mission before because the council probably always knew that there was a possibility of death on it."

"Don't even think like that!" She exclaimed.

Kaleb looked at her and smiled warmly. "Hey, don't worry. You know there's no way I would let anything dangerous happen to you."

Bastila knew what he said to be true, but that wasn't what concerned her. "Yes, I know you will, but all of that will be pointless if you get hurt."

"Hmm…thanks for caring, but I'll be ok." He stood up. "You always tell me that I'm reckless, but that's just the way I am; it's been implanted in me since I was young. I just don't know anything else-it's instinct."

She felt a tightning in her cchest. It wasn't right that he thought that…for him to put his life on such a low standard.

"Why do you act that way?"

"I guess it's because it was like that when I was a boy. Your life expectancy wasn't very long on Deraila if you were a human. You pretty much had to take life-threatening decisions everyday, just to survive." Kaleb chuckled. "It's not all bad though when I'm fighting alone."

"Why alone?"

"Remember back on Kashyyyk, when I fought those three dark jedi off by myself?"

She nodded. "I also remember that your arm was badly burnt."

"It was, but if you or Zalbaar were with me, it would've been so much worse than that. I would have always been regulating if the two of you were ok. When you're alone and have nothing to live for, you're also the most dangerous thing in a battle."

"You have…nothing to live for?" She asked as they walked down a long hallway that split at the end and went into another hallway.

He grinned. "Maybe that was a little dramatic. It's not that I don't have anything to live for, because I do now, but it's just that I'm not afraid to die. If I don't, yay. If I do," Kaleb shrugged indifferently. "Darn."

"I don't want you thinking like that." She told him firmly. "I don't want…anyone to die on this mission and you must know that…people will care if you die or not."

"Hey, don't think I want to die; farthest thing from it. Like I said, I have something to live for."

She wondered badly about what it could be that he wanted to live for, but he stopped in front of a door in the bleak hallway.

"Here it is. This is the Dissassembly Room."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. The first door on the left hand side. Should be in here and also…" He opened the door. "This droid that you know we have to use. We can re-activate it let it go to town on our enemies."

She nodded distractedly to what he had said, her thoughts still in a jumble. Bastila hadn't realized how much it scared her to think of such a thing. Kaleb being dead…she didn't even want to think about what she would do if that happened. She had that universal compassion for the beauty in all life from being a Jedi, but…he seemed to have a special just for him.

Kaleb closed the droid's panel, as it's red sheild hummed around it.

"Well, this one's all ready to go! Come on though, we have to get out of here. I can't reprogram the thing anymore and it's been told to go into that other room."

The two went back outside into the hallway and both chose an opposite side of the door.

"Hey!" A metallic affected voice exclaimed from inside the room. "Did those idiots lose track of their droid again?"

"Well," A feminine voice said. "That just means that we'll have extra protection."

Kaleb chuckled quietly. "Operation: Kill the Dumbasses should start right…about…now!"

"What the hell?" The same metallic affected voice asked. "Why is the droid raisng its rifle at us?"

"This droid's been sabotaged!" The woman shouted in alarm. "Destroy it now!"

Multiple blaster shots resounded from the room abruptly ending the once silence.

/Shouldn't we go in there now, while they're down/ Bastila asked Kaleb through their bond, since the noise was so loud. /The droid will surely be destroyed if we don't help./

/And that's exactly what we want to happen./

/You want it to fall/

/Yes...sort off. I inserted a self-detonate program that would trigger when it's close to becoming non-functional. In fact, since the blaster fire has decreased significantly, I would say it'll explode in three…two-/

A loud explosion erupted from the room.

/Hmm, one second off…oh well/

Bastila coughed from the smoked the exited the area and waved her hand in an attempt to clear it. "I'd wager that it's safe to go in now?"

He smiled. "I'm gonna find out."

Kaleb went inside the room and saw four dead sith bodies in red armor and the solitary droid on the ground.

He whistled and saluted it. "Couldn't have done it without you."

He looked around, his eyes stopping on the enormous Republic droid.

"Now, where, oh where could that data module be?" He asked sardonically. "It couldn't be that huge, bigger than life, gigantic droid over there, could it?

Bastila sighed. "Just take it out."

He smirked as he went to the machine. "I hope you never say that to me on a personal level, unless, you just couldn't take _it _anymore."

Her face scrunched up with repulsion as she caught on to what he was saying. "I'll erase all of your worries right now. What you incredibly nasty mind is thinking will never happen."

Kaleb removed the module easily and grinned, "Never say never."

"Unfortunaley, you're allowed to think whatever you want, but graciously enough, I don't have or want to hear them. Let's go re-join with Carth. He's most possibly found a way to get through those doors by now."

She walked out of the disassembly room and he followed her out. As they turned a corner, however, Kaleb couldn't help but laugh. It was too funny how so many saw him as the leader and yet, he tagged along after Bastila so eagerly and without question. If one looked closely enough, they might have thought of him as a kinrath pup following its mother. Not knowing where he was going, but completely trusting the onr that was getting him there.

She suddenly stopped and turned around with an annoyed expression lining her features. "What?"

He was confused, as she must have noticed because she elaborated.

"You have that stupid lopsided grin on your face so what is so terribly funny?"

"_Ohhhh_." He told her with complete understanding, but then gave her a blank look. "Nothing that you would care about. I'm pretty sure you told me that you didn't want to hear my thoughts and I don't want to offend you with my boorish musings."

Bastila scoffed. "Well then good."

"Great." He concluded indifferently.

She turned back around and continued walking. "Fine."

He held in a laugh. "Peachy keen even."

Kaleb saw her tense up slightly from his comment, but didn't say anything back. They finally reached the room where Carht was and saw him opening the last water chamber door. The pilot sighed with relief and Kaleb laughed.

"Looks like you had fun."

Carth smiled. "Almost too much. Did you get the data?"

The younger man showed him the module. "You mean this?" He put it inside his knapsack. "Piece of cake. We found an abandoned droid and let's just say we had a…blast."

Bastila rolled her eyes from his joke. "Since the doors are open, I see nothing in our way. Let's go see if we can find these adolecent Selkath that Shalaes has told us about."

"Alright, but don't be surprised if the Sith have already had an impact on them." Carth told her as the three went up to the northern section of the base.

--------------------------------------

"I guess we know the answer now." Kaleb told his companions as he put his sabers back on his belt.

They had just killed a Selkath that had attacked them on sight.

"Yes." Bastila said sadly. "It is evident that the Sith have had an impact on the Selkath youth."

Carth nodded. "A technique to get the young to believe their ideals so that when they get older, they'll accept the Sith easily. That'll automatically give them exclusive kolto rights."

"Mannan would then lose it's independence and the sith will have the upper hand." Kaleb finished for him. "We need to find Shasa. Maybe she can convince the other Selkath to leave this place."

They headed to a hallway and Kaleb opened the first door he saw. A group of young Selkath all turned toward them.

**_/Intruders! Should we sound the alarm/ _**A Selkath youth directed to a female, that Kaleb thought to be Shasa.

_**/No-wait. We cannot always be running to the Masters for help. We should handle this on our own. Perhaps this is a test that the Sith have prepared for us./ **_

Kaleb walked up to the Selkath. "I've got a hunch that you're the Shasa I'm looking for."

Her eyes narrowed. **_/How do you know my name and why have you come?/ _**

"I know your name because I know your dad. I came because he has me investigating the disappearances of all of you."

_**/I told you your father would get suspicious, Shasa! He always hated the Sith./ **_

**_/My father doesn't understand-/ _**Shasa told her friend dismissively. **_/he is blinded by his own prejudice/ _**She directed her attention back to the young human male. **_/The Sith are teaching us mastery of the Force. Our alliance with the Sith will bring strength to Manaan and the Selkath people./ _**

Kaleb was impressed. To have such a tempting power at your disposal and she only wanted to use it to help her planet and her people.

"What you want to achieve is admirable, but you are going about it in the wrong way. The sith are in no way interested helping you, but furthering their own power. What they have told you were all lies."

Shasa scoffed. **_/All Republic propaganda. The Sith are the victims of lies and half-truths! They are not monsters-no more so than the Republic./ _**

"And, sadly, I have to agree with you. I am not saying that one extreme is any better than the other, but only tyring to warn you against deception."

_**/There is no deception here! The Sith have promised to guide us in the use of the Force, as a sign of their good faith. And once the Republic is defeated, the Sith have promised to withdraw from Manaan and respect our indepence./ **_

The young man gave an amused scoff. "Listen to yourself. Do you really believe that the sith will just up and leave the planet without tapping out all its resources first? Surely you have been taught by them to gain more strength and control through any means?"

**_/Our studies are our own/ _**She told him crossly, but the slight widening of her eyes told Kaleb that she knew of what he spoke of.

"I thought as much. The only thing that will happen if the Republic's defeated is the enslavement of your planet."

**_/Spare us your lies/ _**The female alien spat at him. **_/The Sith have treated us with nothing but respect and honor/ _**

"For how long? What they have given you is a mask that they'll wear until their plan is ready. But when it is, all of that false respect and artificial honor will fade away as you gradually follow more and more of their teachings. You might want power for Manaan and the other Selkath for now, but soon; the Manaan and Selkath parts will disappear. You'll only want the power for yourself and you'll do anything for it." He looked around at the other Selkath. "Even kill your own friends."

_**/Falsehoods! The Sith are not taking advantage of us, but we are using them! We are the ones in control and in no way their prisoners, but in truth, we could leave whenever we wish! Our friend Galas chose to leave, and he was returned safely to his home in **_

_**Ahto City./ **_

"He has gone back to his home safely?" Kaleb asked in disbelief. "The Sith would kill anyone they think too weak to handle what they teach. There's a small chance that he still lives."

One of the apprentices glanced around nervously. **_/Shasa, what if they speak the truth? Remember what happened at Taris…/ _**He trailed off.

"Yes…" Bastila declared, knowing that that was a great point. "Certainly you must have heard of the destruction of Taris. It is your 'honorable' friends that have committed that atrocity."

Shasa grew angry from the questioning that she was receiving from one of her own. **_/Taris is nothing but a Republic lie/ _**

"Really, Shasa," Kaleb told her calmly. "As sometimes stupid the Republic may be, why would they lie about the destruction of a whole planet? There are obviously going to be people like you who don't believe and will check to see if it was really destroyed or not."

The female Selkath bristled at the comment. **_/If the Sith are such monsters, then prove it to us. Surely there must be some evidence of the horrors they commit/ _**

"If evidence is what you require, them my companions and I can be it; there's more than enough to go around. We were on Taris when it was being bombarded by Malak and almost didn't make it out alive. I'll even show you the scar I got on my calf from being hit by one of the blasts from a sith warship."

_**/The scar that you have could have been aquired anywhere and as to you being on Taris, why should I put any value in your words? We need physical proof, not the words of some Republic sympathzier./ **_

"If there's one thing that you believe out of my mouth," He told her with narrowed eyes. "Let it be that I never sympatize for those you don't deserve it." He sighed. "But since it is clear that you won't even consider what I have told you, I have no choice. The others treat you as their leader, so if I cannot change your mind, I'll have no hope at theirs. We'll find this proof that you so desperately need, but it will change nothing if you are not willing to accept that you are wrong."

_**/Shasa, I think we should give them a chance to prove themselves./ **_

_**/Hmph. We will not report your presence to our Sith Masters yet. If you bring us proof of Sith lies and torture we will return to our families and report this to the Ahto City authorities./ **_

"Well, great!" Carth exclaimed. "It can't be that hard to find proof of Sith activities in there own base…can it?"

"We're gonna find out."

**_/Until then, we shall stay here and continue our training in the ways of the Force." _**

Kaleb nodded as they left the room.

"Let's get this scavenger huunt started! We can either go through the door on the left or the one on the right."

Carth shrugged. "Right is always right."

The young man turned. "Right it is then."

He opened the door and Bastila gasped in horror as she saw multiple dead bodies lying on the floor and one writhing in pain. "It's just…_despicable_."

The one Selkath that was still alive spit some blood out of his mouth. **_/Tell…tell Shasa…the Sith…/ _**He coughed violently. **_/…take this to her…/ _**

The Selkath eyes widened as he grunted in pain and then became terribly still before he could finish his sentence.

Kaleb shook his head and picked up a token from his hand. "That must've been Galas. I knew that wouldn't have let him leave so easily."

"Yes, I've feared the worst also, but that pin that you have should be more than enough justification of the Sith's crimes."

"Yeah…but it still doesn't make what was done to him right. We have to get those kids out of here before they share the same fate."

The group walked back to the dormitory and Shasa looked at Kaleb expectantly.

_**/Well? Have you brought us evidence to back up your accusations? Have you find proof that the Sith are evil, as you claim/ **_

"We've found your friend Galas dying from torture." Kaleb handed her the medallion. "He wanted me to give you this."

One off the Selkath apprentices gasped. **_/Shasa-this is the pin I gave Galas when we were children. There…there is blood on it./ _**

Shasa looked at the pin sadly, but quickly glared at the human. **_/You could've found this anywhere! For all we know, you killed him!" _**

"Open your eyes! Why would I kill someone close to you to get your trust? And why would Galas give his pin to his killer?"

**_/I don't know if we should believe them, Shasa. He could have searched through Galas's belongings and stole the pin./ _**

"The sith, you're beloved masters. Have tortured him to death, not I."

Bastila nodded. "He speaks the truth, but if you do not believe him, use the Force then. Look into your heart and you will realize what is truth and what is lies."

The female Selkath finally faultered. **_/I…I didn't want to believe it, but I can no longer deny what I know to be true. Galas is dead and the Sith are responsible. I must…apologize for doubting you. The Sith are truly evil as you have claimed./ _**

"How quick one casts the person evil when they have wronged them." Kaleb shook his head. "Instead of focusing so much on what to label them, look at what you are doing that makes them not want to be 'good' like you in the first place."

One of Shasa's friends nodded in shame. **_/There is much wisdom in your words, human. We will learn and make amends of our mistakes by reporting this to the Ahto City authorities/ _**

**_/Yes-/ _**Shasa agreed with the same vigor. **_/we must report this at once. We thank you, Kaleb, for showing us the truth. You have saved us from a terrible fault./ _**

"I've showed you nothing that you didn't already know yourselves. We just gave you a push in a different direction."

"In the right direction, we hope." Bastila told all of them. "Given more time in this place, the Sith would have turned you fully to the dark side…and you would have betryed your world gladly."

Shasa turned to her friends. **_/Quickly, my friends- we can stay here no longer. We must flee this foul embassy and warn our people against the plot to corrupt Manaan youth./ _**

The group of adolecent Selkaths ran off and went down the hallway.

Kaleb smiled. "Well, that's another thing checked off the ol' list. Hopefully we can leave this base without anymore problems."

As soon as he finished his comment, an alarm blared with a computerized warning.

_All Sith personal, there are reports of intruders in the base. Repeat, there are intruders in the base. Eliminate anyone who you do not regonize! _

Bastila gave Kaleb an irritated glare. "You just had to say it, didn't you?"

He was about to respond, but Carth cut him off. "Quick-there's no time for arguments. We need to find a place to hide before we're caught!"

Kaleb nodded, opened a random door, and motioned the two inside. He closed the door when they were all inside and exhaled.

"We should…" He took a breath. "be okay…for now." He turned around and saw two Selkath and a Dark Jedi looking probably as surprised as they were. "Oh, son of a rancor!" He exclaimed in absolute disbelief in his bad luck.

The Dark Master glared at them. "How did you get in here? No one is allowed in my personal chamber without my authorization!"

"Believe me pal, I don't want to be here anymore than you don't want me to; so we're just gonna go."

The young man was about to open the door, the man eyed Bastila strangely.

"Wait-I recognize you!"

Kaleb sighed as he dropped his hand from the door panels and took out his sabers. "Here we go."

The End

It's like every chapter gets longer! I'm just minding my own business, writing the story and then I do my word count thingy and it say 16,000 something words! I'm sorry ya'll, but this might be the longest saga yet. And it pisses me off in a bad way that I keep have to end my chaps. before I want to! (Puts the knife down and let's the person go) Whew…I'm sorry. I just missed my anger management class and I'm a little on edge. No, but really. I guess it's a good thing because that means my chapters will be coming out quicker since it's all already written down.


	11. There is No Peace There is Ignorance

Yes! I'm off punishment, baby! Thought you could keep me down! Oh. (Clears throat) For those of you who didn't read my profile, I was punished and couldn't write the story at the time, but it's done now and I have my jump drive back. Also, I'm incredibly happy-I'm sorry, happy doesn't cut it! I'm ecstatic, overjoyed, exultant, elated, and you know…glad that I'm finally on summer break! I'm gonna sleep, eat, vacation till my heart's content, then eat and sleep some more!

(Expression of happiness drops) But, yeah whatever, back to the story. lol I'm very grateful for the great reviews I received. You just don't know how much everyone of you help me out with them. I'm also happy that all of you don't seem to mind long chapters, so that's what I'm gonna do. I won't go crazy with the words, but this and future chaps. will be pretty darn long.

Let's see here…hmmm…the last one ended right before they were about to fight the sith master person dude, so it's continuing right from that point.

But really, one thing that I seriously didn't like about Manaan was the Selkath. They just thought they were better than you on every level with their fish heads all held up high and mighty. I mean come on, how many times did we get arrested and almost killed on this planet? Also, Gluupor from the hotel who you have to interview-_oh my frinkin' gosh_. The only thing worse than listening to him on the game, is writing out every single word that he said repeatedly. And has he never heard of pronouns? Gluupor this, Gluupor that!

Sorry, just had to get those out.

Uh, little preview of what's gonna be happening in this one: People are gonna get arrested, visions are happening, relationships are blooming, new talents are learned on both sides, Kaleb attorney at law, interrogations are going down, lying and schemes are everywhere and I'm not just talking about the Sunry case (ooooooo, somebody's a liar), a guitar is purchased, (had to put it in there people-love the guitar too much and it's gonna be used in another chap.) Question games, and some other crap that has, I don't know, angst in it. Whew…that was a word full, but that's what you should be looking forward to.

Also, I'm thinking it's time to start showing reactions from…let's say…feelings. I mean, if I was really close to the cutest boy in the world I would feel more than happiness, if you get what I'm saying! And I'm gosh darn sure that the boy would too.

Alright, keep that in mind, and go for it people!

Chapter 11

The Sith glared at the party. "Lord Malak was most displeased when he learned you had escaped from Taris alive! He has promised a great reward to whoever destroys you."

Kaleb walked a little closer to the Dark Master, while nodding his head. "You know, this is the third time I've heard that little comment and, I'm just nosy really; what is this oh so golly gee great reward that Malak is giving? I mean if I were you, I'd go for the beach vacation because you could definitely use a tan. The whole pale skin, 'I'm evil so fear me now thing' …" He looked at the man's face and shivered in disgust. "It just ain't workin' for ya anymore."

"Silence!" The Sith Master boomed while he ignited a solo crimson lightsaber. "I am _sick_ of your ramblings, Jedi! All that you need to know is that you will be cast down today by my saber!"

"Oh, you think you can beat me with only one?" Kaleb asked in interest as he powered down one of his sabers and clipped it back on his belt. "Ok, then I'll fight you with only one of mine. Let's make this fun for me."

One of the Selkath apprentices bowed to his Master. **_/Master, give us the honor of aiding you in destroying this enemy of the Sith./ _**

The man nodded. "As you wish, my eager apprentices, we shall remove this thorn from Malak's side once and for all!"

"Whoa!" Kaleb exclaimed in feigned shock with his hands on the side of his face. "I've just been upgraded from pest to thorn in Malak's side! _Awesome_!"

The two Selkath took out two blasters each and started firing at the insolent young man. He deflected their blasts easily, but redirected them back at the Sith Master. The Dark Jedi repelled them back with the same sense of no real exertion, but they hit the walls of the room instead of finding Kaleb again.

"Hmm…thirty seconds." The young man told his companions.

Carth kept shooting at the apprentices, faring well since they were no where near his skills. "What do you mean thirty seconds?"

He smirked as he removed his bag from over the top of his head and dropped it to the ground. "I'm gonna take down the master in that time limit. Do me a favor, and take care of the Selkath for me, huh?"

Bastila, with her golden saber already out, deflecting blaster bolts too, looked at Kaleb like he was slow in the head. "You plan fight him alone?"

"That's about the sum of it." He looked at the Sith, who glared at him trying to calculate his next move. "Like I said, thirty seconds is all I need. Don't worry, you'll be the only one who kills me one of these days. I've reserved that spot just for you." He told her with a smile and then ran up to the Dark Jedi who switched into a defensive stance.

"I thought you would never come to challenge me, _Jedi_." The last of the Sith's words dripped with hatred.

"I'm not a _Jedi,_" Kaleb hissed, with the same anger as his azure saber collided with his.

Both men tried to overpower the other, but none gained any ground.

Bastila couldn't get close enough to her target, but that didn't matter because he couldn't touch her either. The bolts that he aimed at her were useless against her two-sided saber and were just deflected back, but the Selkath apparently didn't acknowledge this. What he had been turned into was horrible. He was so tainted by the dark side that he didn't even know that he was harming himself. Carth hissed in pain as the other apprentice managed to hit his lower right arm as it was exposed when he was firing. He put one of his blasters in its holster and focused on using the one he had modified.

The Sith stared at him in an angry confusion. "What do you mean by this?"

Kaleb grunted as he twisted his arms back to obtain a little distance between him and the man. "I meant exactly what I have said. I do not believe in any of the tenets of the Jedi code, so I am not a Jedi."

He exuded a Force Wave from his body to knock the Dark Jedi back, but he jumped out of its path. The other two Selkath were not so lucky, as they had been tossed to the ground and held in a stasis.

Carth took advantage of this and, while one of the apprentices was down, shot him right in the center of his head; killing him instantly. Bastila had repelled so many of the other Selkath's bolts back at him, that it was already badly injured. She walked over to him as he was trapped in the after effect of Kaleb's attack.

She raised her double saber above his head.

"I'm so sorry." She whispered desolately. "I know you don't deserve this." She brought the saber down as the Selkath's eyes widened in fright.

The Sith sneered at Kaleb's pathetic attempt. "If you think to find a sense of mercy in me because you have finally found out the truth, then you will be sorely disappointed!"

The man charged at him.

Kaleb tossed his saber in his off-hand. It was slightly weaker than his right, but the Sith's left side was open and that was were he had to strike.

"You think that I am trying to beg for mercy?" The young man laughed, which aggravated the Sith more as he neared him. "I was only fixing your mistake. You had called me a Jedi and I'm not."

He grinned as the Dark Master raised his saber at an attack to his "open" right side. Kaleb rapidly turned around and blocked the swipe with his saber and punched him in the stomach with his stronger right hand. The man reeled back from the impact as he held his stomach in agony. The young man switched the saber back to his right hand and stabbed him in his exposed upper chest. The Sith shrieked in pain as he removed the saber as soon as it had entered.

"Ooo, that's _really_ a bad case of heartburn." Kaleb deactivated his lightsaber as the man fell and gasped sharply as he tumbled to the ground. "Hmm…What do you know? Twenty nine point five seconds. I've outdone myself." He returned the saber to his belt and turned around. "Is everyone okay?"

"I'm alright." Bastila told him as her saber powered down with a crackle and hiss.

"I got a scrape across my arm, but besides that, I'm great."

Kaleb looked at Carth and saw that he was cradling his right arm as he walked over to him.

"You just had to outdo me, didn't ya?" He asked with a grin and handed him an advanced medpack.

"Of course." The pilot told him, grinning back as he accepted it. "How else could I beat you defeating that Dark Jedi in less than thirty seconds?"

"Point; gosh darn good one at that."

Bastila placed the cylinder in the loop in her belt. "Speaking of, are you hurt Kaleb?"

"Like that sith could touch me." He responded proudly with a just as boastful smirk.

She rolled her eyes. "I'm still wondering just who you were trying to impress with that foolhardy display. Maybe you were attempting to woo the Selkath apprentices with your so called 'heroics'?"

He walked over to the former Master's room. "Well, if I managed to woo you with my "heroics", it would all be worth it."

"You being transported to any other planet in the galaxy would be worth it."

"Aw, I was worried about you too, Bastila. But now to open this oh so enticing footlocker."

Kaleb was about to take a step toward it, but stopped his foot in mid-air, jumped back, and exhaled.

He wiped the top of his brow. "Whew! That was close!"

"What was close?" The Jedi asked him as she peered into the room.

"I almost stepped in the perimeter of this plasma mine and since I didn't notice it until it was almost too late, it was probably deadly." He kneeled down and recovered it. "Never know when we might need this, but now," He told her as he stood up. "For the prize."

He opened the footlocker and frowned when he picked up a datapad. "All that protection for this?"

"Hmm…it must be of some importance. What does it say?"

Kaleb activated it. "It has some notes from that master I just killed. It says what we already know: the Sith have been trying to turn the impressionable minds of the youth Selkath over to the dark side. But…oh wow…some progress reports show that the final plan was to use the young Selkaths to make a puppet government that they would dominate."

"We should give this to Shaelas also. It will aid him in telling the Selkath authorities the truth."

He walked over to where he had dropped his knapsack, picked it up, and put the device inside. "Let's get out of here. Carth, are you ready?"

"Just finished." He answered as he tossed the shot away. "Ready when you are."

Kaleb smiled as he paused for a second. "…Ok, I'm ready…To-"

Bastila walked out of the room and headed down the hallway before he could finish.

"So impatient." He said to himself as he followed and Carth just shook his head.

-------------------------------

**_/You there! Human/ _**A Selkath officer called out as soon as the group came out of the base's door. The multiple droids that he had automatically encircled them. **_/You are placed under arrest of the Ahto City Civil Authority/ _**

"I'm under arrest?" Kaleb asked incredulously. "What? Why?"

_**/Though the Sith Embassy here is considered sovereign territory of the Sith Empire, we have been monitoring an alarming number of weapon discharges and detonations from within the base./ **_

"Uh-huh, that was them trying to kill us over and over again!" Carth exclaimed.

The officer ignored them. **_/Inquires to the staff of the Embassy yielded no response. It would seem that contact had been out. Our cameras, however, recorded you entering the base shortly before contact was lost and fighting apparently began. It is the conclusion of the Ahto City Civil Authority that you are responsible for the disturbance here, and you are hereby placed under arrest./ _**All of the droids suddenly turned their rifles toward him.**_ /You will come with us to await your trial./_**

Kaleb nodded reluctantly. "I will go with you…if you let my friends go free. They've done nothing but protect me."

"No, Kaleb!" Bastila told him, incensed at what he was saying. "There is no need for you to act noble in this situation!"

"Bastila's right." Carth told him. "You don't have to do this."

The young man disregarded what they said and stayed his attention to the Selkath. "So…do we have a deal? You can have me without a fight _if_ you let my friends go?"

The officer nodded. **_/This is agreeable. You are a material witnesses so the individuals who accompany you will be detained at your vessel for further questioning, and the vessel itself prohibited from leaving Manaan./ _**

He smiled as he took his sabers off their clips and let them fall to the ground. "Alright, take me away droids." Kaleb chuckled. "I've always wanted to say that."

The Selkath ordered the droids to restrain him. **_/We will leave. Now. If you attempt to resist, we will resort with overwhelming force./ _**

"Hey, no arguments here. I wouldn't use the force to call my sabers to my hand and destroy you all in less than a minute." He smiled. "_Nope_, not me."

Two other droids walked behind his companions and raised their rifles to their backs.

Kaleb glared fiercely at the Selkath officer. "What are those droids doing?"

**_/They merely will accompany them to your vessel for questioning./_**

"Kaleb, please just show them what we've found in the base." Bastila pleaded. "They will punish you severely if you are found guilty."

He grinned. "Hey, don't look so sad. I'll be okay, you know that. I'm me, remember?"

The droids tightened their grip on his arms and started to lead him away.

"Not so hard! I'm going!" Kaleb told him as he walked with them.

-----------------------------------

The Selkath officer and the two droids restraining Kaleb entered a holding room.

_**/This is where you will spend the duration of your time until your arbiter is summoned. Place him in the cell./ **_

The droids pushed him into an almost egg-shaped bared cage and closed the lid.

"Well," He said to himself as he looked around. "Doesn't that look like the comfiest cell ever?"

_**/Your Arbiter's name is Bwa'lass. Right now he is preparing to question your two human companions./ **_

"Oh, so you're going to interrogate them back on the Hawk. How long does that usually take?"

_**/Most of the time it could last from thirty minutes to an hour./ **_

"Hmm…it's not against any of your rules for me to take a nap while I'm waiting, is it?"

The alien shook his head.

"That's great. When Bwa'lass gets here, wake me up. Thanks."

Before the Selkath could protest, Kaleb hung his head down and started snoring.

-------------------------------------

Bastila and Carth were sitting in the meeting room of the Ebon Hawk with two droids and a Selkath. The former had been trying to contact her bond-mate, but the bond was dampened and the latter wanted to help Kaleb out anyway he could.

_**/Greetings, humans. I am called Bwa'lass, and I have been selected as the Arbiter for your companion's trial. **_

"What has he been charged with?" Bastila asked sharply, getting straight to business.

_**/He has been charged with initiating violence within the Sith Embassy, murdering members of the Ambassadorial Commission of the Sith Empire, and disregarding our own laws pertaining violence in Ahto City./ **_

"And what usually happens to a person found guilty of these charges?" Carth asked him, trying to remain calm.

_**/The most likely scenario that would happen to a person found guilty of these charges, would be death by electrocution./ **_

The Jedi's eyes widened in astonishment. "He'll be…electrocuted? That…it can't happen!"

"Calm down, Bastila. Even though this is a bad situation, we need to keep level heads about it."

She glared at him, enraged by the fact that he didn't care about what was happening. "Maybe you don't understand how _bad_ the problem really is! Kaleb could die for the sins of the Sith and this Selkath could probably care less!"

"I know how you feel, but you can't badger his Arbiter-especially when he's Kaleb's only hope! All we can do is answer his questions so that we can help in anyway possible."

Bastila took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, knowing that he was right. "You're right, Carth. I apologize for my behavior."

He nodded while she laid a hand on her fore head.

How easy it was for her emotions to become so unstable when things concerned Kaleb. It was, maybe too ironic, that he had just been speaking about how he would handle his death and now it could be at hand. She never thought there would be a time where he could be killed and she could do nothing to stop it besides talk to an Arbiter. It was pathetic, how helpless she was to him now and she utterly detested it.

_**/I would like to ask the two of you a few questions regarding the events that led your companion's arrest./ **_

Carth nodded. "Go ahead."

_**/For what reason did you enter the Sith Embassy/ **_

"It was a task for the Republic." The Jedi answered as calmly as she could. "They wanted us to recover a data module out of a droid that the Sith had stolen."

_**/Indeed. I know that this may have seemed noble of you, but this task means little to we Selkath. But, perhaps, this deed will bring the human favor in front of the judge's eyes. Next question. What is your prior association with the Sith/ **_

"We are on a mission to stop them from taking over the galaxy!" She was trying her best to restrain the agitation she felt from the Selkath's carelessness of the situation. "Is that enough of an association to you?"

_**/The Sith are an expansionistic power, true, at war with the Republic. You may make it your personal mission to fail them, but the authorities take a dim view of its taking place here. I think a more through explanation is needed in order to convince the judges, but that should be all the information I need of you./ **_

"You can't be serious." She stated in disbelief. "There's no way that these two questions can give you enough answers to defend Kaleb accurately!"

Carth winced from her rising voice. Making Kaleb's Arbiter mad would not help him in the long run.

"What she means is, don't you want to ask us anymore questions?"

_**/I have all the information I need. I should get to the defendant now, the judges are waiting./ **_

"That's not a good enough answer." Bastila told the Selkath. "How in the Force do you expect to defend him without obtaining more information from us?"

_**/I believe that this trial will be relatively straightforward. It should be obvious to the judges as to what has transpired./ **_

"Carth, do you not see how this…_Arbiter _does not care one way or the other? He has already made his decision of Kaleb's actions and it will surely be reflected during his defending of him!"

**_/I will endeavor to prove to them that your companion is not guilty of the heinous crimes that the off-worlder is accused./ _**Bwa'lass assured her. **_/I thank you for your cooperation, humans. Goodbye./ _**

He and the two droids left the ship while Carth tried to calm Bastila down.

-----------------------------------------

A vision of Revan in a huge flagship distorted Kaleb's regular dreams, but this one was different. This time…he was clad in a metallic ebony and burgundy sith armor while sitting on a throne. He didn't know how this was happening. Everything was so real…he could even feel the cold surface of the mask he donned. Kaleb looked around and saw several sith working different computers or fixing up the ship, but what really caught his eye…Revan's eye, was a timid Malak approaching him. He now had his metal jaw and bowed to him-Revan.

"_L-Lord Revan, the Republic fleets that had surrounded us have all been destroyed, except the one Bastila is abroad." _

"_Ah, yes." _A voice that emanated from the mask that was like Kaleb's, but also, there was no way that they could be the same. It had no pleasure in it, but just an acknowledgement that his orders were followed. _"The one with my old friend, Miss. Shan, was the only one to survive. Tell me; was this because of her ability of Battle Meditation or your own inept weakness of mind?" _

"_Lord Revan…I-I don't understand what you mean by that." _

Revan gave a sneer, but Kaleb felt the chilled haunting that burned in the simple expression.

"_Of course you do not. I meant that even if the female Jedi did not have such a powerful technique, would you still be capable enough to destroy the flagship she is on?" _

"_M-most definitely, my Lord. My life's objective is to help you destroy all Jedi." _

"_Almost right, Malak. I plan to exterminate anyone who does not want change. Anyone who is vulnerable or oblivious to their own flaws. The Jedi attempt to stop me, but I will make a new world order where no one will have the illusion of choice. I will flaunt no higher peace or ultimate power, but take away these options and give uncomplicated life in its stead." _

Kaleb was shocked. Of course, he didn't agree with the destroying part, but the part about making a new world order without illusion. Everything would be normal and nothing would have to be feared. Those things he couldn't help, but agree with.

The Dark Lord continued. _"Doing so, however, means that I must tear up the roots of the ideals that have already planted into idle minds." _

"_Yes, my liege. I trust your infinite wisdom, but what exactly are we going to do with the Jedi on the ship?" _

"_Kill them all besides Bastila. Her power to control the outcome of battles has helped the Republic and Jedi so far, but when I turn her to my cause…" _My-dammit! Revan's eyes glanced out at the billions of stars._ "I will be able to conquer in a much faster pace." _

"_This is true, Lord Revan, but what about the repercussions of her not agreeing to work with you? You must remember how strong-willed she was back at the academy?" _

"_Are you questioning my orders, or even more idiotic, me?" _

"_I wouldn't think of it M-" _

"_I know you do not think, now do you Malak?" _

"_N-no, Master." _

"_Then all you need to do is what I have commanded of you. Miss. Shan and I have much to…discuss." _

"_Yes, my liege. Excuse me for the delay." _

"_Do not waste time excusing yourself, but remember if you value your life, not to make it a habit." _

Kaleb watched as the former friend bowed and then scampered off, knowing that this had the mere moments before Malak would betray him. But what really bothered him was…just what else did Revan have to discuss with Bastila? Revan said she was a friend and she confirmed this also, but…it seemed like they meant more to each other? His questions were unheard as the vision started to dissipate when a muffled voice called on him.

_No! Come on, just a little bit more! _He exclaimed, this being the first time that he actually wanted a vision to go on.

The blocked voice clearer and louder, forcing him to wake up.

**_/Ah/ _**A Selkath that wasn't the previous officer stated. **_/You have risen at last./ _**

Kaleb rubbed his eyes in agitation. "Who are you?"

_**/I am Bwa'lass, and I will be your Arbiter for the duration of your trial./ **_

"Arbiter?" He questioned in confusion.

_**/Yes, Arbiter. The one who defends you before the judges of the Selkath people./ **_

"Oh no, I wasn't confused about what an arbiter is, but puzzled by the fact as to why I have one. No offense, but there's really no need for your services. I can capably represent myself."

_**/Why it is true that you have this right, I would recommend against it. Due to your confinement, you have not had much of a chance to build up evidence to pursue your case. Also, I do not believe you off-worlders truly understand the minds of we Selkath. It would be best if you left you defense up to me./ **_

"So, I have an arbiter who's prejudice? Why do I feel like this partnership won't work in my favor?" He asked sarcastically.

_**/I disagree because I may be your only chance of survival, but right now I need to pose some questions of your arrest. I have already been given all relevant data on you and your companions and their own story on what has happened, so that can be disregarded. For what reason did you enter the Sith Embassy/ **_

"I was invited. Did you not see the pass that I used with your cameras?"

_**/Indeed, I have. That would also explain the reason the passcard was in your possession in the first place. What is your prior association with the Sith/ **_

"I have no prior association." Kaleb told him simply.

**_/Is that so…since you have that passcard to their base, I can only assume you believe taking this route would lessen your sentence…/ _**Bwa'lass shook his head. **_/Very well. That is all the information I need from you, for now. If you wish, we can begin the trial whenever you are ready./ _**

"You've got to be kidding. I'm pretty sure you have more questions than that?"

_**/Hmm…Curious…but we shouldn't keep the judges waiting./ **_

"What's so curious?"

_**/The female human that you travel with asked the same thing you have concerning my methods. / **_

Kaleb smiled. "Yeah, that's sounds like something she would say." He chuckled. "I bet she asked how you were gonna defend me without getting more information too?"

_**/Yes, she did. The human seemed to have must distrust against me./ **_

"No, that's just her way of letting me know she cares. I'm not trying to get you fired or anything like that, but now I'm really sure that I want to defend myself."

_**/I strongly recommend against it. I am versed in all the necessary particulars of the case and Selkath law, off-worlder. You would do well to heed my advice./ **_

"Yeah, never was good at heeding others advice, so I'm still gonna take option number two."

The Selkath shook his head, in what Kaleb thought, pity. **_/You off-worlders are not known for your mental prowess. I shall leave your demise up to you./ _**

The Arbiter left as the lid of the cage lifted and opened. He was told to walk through the opening by another Selkath at a counter. He nodded and went through, soon seeing the five judges.

The one in the middle cleared his throat. **_/You stand accused of the grievous murder of many Sith, and extensive property damage to their Embassy here. How do you plead/ _**

Kaleb smiled. "I don't plead, I tell."

_**/We will not tolerate insolence/ The Selkath judge on the far right exclaimed viciously. /You will obey the rules of the court, or you will be summarily guilty/ **_

"Ok, ok. Loosen up, man…uh…fish. I plead not guilty."

**_/Let the record show that this trial has commenced. Presiding are judges Shelkar…/_**

_**/Jhosa./ **_

_**/Naleshekan./ **_

_**/Kota./ **_

_**/And Duula./** _

_**/This trial is to determine the culpability and punishment of this individual in the recent assault on the Sith Embassy./ **_

_**/Given the security of the trial, we can dispense with the normal formalities of the court and proceed directly./ **_

_I bet they're the life of the parties. _Kaleb thought while another judge said…something.

_**/You have pleaded not guilty, yet there were reports of weapon fire and detonations from within the Sith Embassy./ **_

_**/You were also seen entering and leaving the Embassy. The Sith have not conferred with the authorities about this matter, but from all available evidence, it would seem that you are the source of the disturbance./ **_

_**/What is your explanation for being in the Sith Embassy/ **_

Kaleb yawned. "Huh? It's my turn to talk now? I was investigatingthe disappearances of the Selkath youth." _It's great to tell the truth, but only the good parts. _

_**/You believe that the Sith have had something to do with these disappearances/ **_

"I know it as a fact."

A judge second to the farthest left scoffed. **_/The off-worlder has probably been listening to Shaelas and his rumor mongering./ _**

_**/Most likely. Do you have any proof to back up your assumption, human/ **_

This was his ticket out.

"Yeah, I actually do." He rummaged through his bag and took out the pin that Galas had given him. "I was given this token by a tortured Selkath in the sith base."

**_/I recognize that token/ _**Judge Kota exclaimed in surprise. **_/It is from Galas, one of the youths who has went missing/ _**

_**/You found this in their Embassy/ **_

"Sure did. There was also Shasa and her friends who, my companions and I, helped convert back to helping their planet once more. You can ask them if you need proof."

**_Jhosa gasped from this revelation. /The Sith have been taking them/ _**

_**/We have verified this token is indeed from Galas indicating the culpability of the Sith in the disappearances of our young./ **_

_**/In gratitude for having discovered this heinous offense, all charges against you regarding this incident have been dropped./ **_

"Hey, everything worked out after all."

_**/Pending a suitable penalty against the Sith, their Embassy is considered off-limits to all but Ahto City Security personnel./ **_

_**/No calls or incidents from their base will be attended until this matter is dealt with, as they are no longer subject to the protections of Selkath law./ **_

_**/You have been found innocent, and may leave as you desire. The trial is now over./ **_

"Great, but there's something I need to ask."

_**/What is it, human/ **_

"Did an old man by the name of Jolee come in here talking about the Sunry murder?"

_**/Oh, are you Kaleb? Actually, an aging human did come in here telling us that a man by the name of Kaleb would come and want to be Sunry's Arbiter./ **_

"Yeah, I'm Kaleb and I want to be the Arbiter for Sunry."

**_/This is acceptable, I believe./ _**Judge Shelkar told him. **_/In Manaan legal tradition dictates the defendant can have an Arbiter who tries to prove his innocence in court. This Arbiter is a neutral party that can investigate, present evidence in the trial, and argue on the defendant's behalf. As you have proved yourself worthy in the trial you defended yourself in and you are a Jedi, you will fill this role adequately./ _**

"So being a Jedi does come in handy every once in a while."

_**/So be it! You are now the appointed Arbiter in the case Sunry vs. The Sith Empire. Your name and position have been recorded in our files./ **_

"Good, that's settled, so let's get some info on this case."

_**/The permanent facts in the case will be given to you by me. You have a limited amount of time in which to investigate and organize a defense of your client, and I advise you use it wisely./ **_

"That's what I'm going for. I already know that the murder took place in that hotel."

_**/Correct. Sunry was seen leaving the building, with a dead Sith woman, Elassa Huros, left behind. He has been charged with murder and is being held in the Ahto City prison facilities. Due to his crippled status he is being kept in a solitary holding cell. Witnesses claimed to have seen the killing and are being detained at the hotel in question pending the trial. The manager of the hotel has now been informed of your appointment/ **_

"Get to see my old buddy again, huh?"

_**/Elassa was found dead of a blaster wound with an incriminating Republic medal clutched in her hand. This information has been uploaded to your datapad. It would be wise to review all info before the trial starts./ **_

"I was thinking it of doing it after the trial, but…I guess I'll try it your way."

**_/ You may question Sunry or the witnesses. The evidence in this case is heavily stacked against Mr. Sunry. I believe it will take some doing to absolve him of this guilt. You may also interview the judges here, including myself, to get an idea of the pertinent factors in this case. Even though you have defended yourself, this is your first time defending another and you are still an off-worlder. I also feel compelled to add good luck as my final missive./ _**

"Thanks, but I don't need it. It's all about the skill of the person."

Kaleb left, deciding that he had more than enough of the courtroom.

"Wow, the sun's about to set already. Busy day." His stomach growled loudly. "Busy day that I haven't eaten once in! I'm so freakin' hungry!"

He had so much crap to do, that he had completely forgotten that he had starved himself.

"Alright, after I talk to Elora, Sunry, Carth, and Bastila I'm gonna have a fat moment."

He turned around and was about to head over to the prisons, but saw Elora running up to him.

"I've heard that you've been selected as Arbiter in Sunry's trial. My husband is innocent. Please don't let him stay in jail for a crime he did not commit."

"I'll try my best, but it would really help my job out if you told me a bit more about Sunry."

She nodded. "He is…he's a cripple. There's no way he could have overpowered the Sith woman like they claim."

"I've been told that Elassa died by a blaster wound and I know that you don't need much power to fire one."

"But, there's no way that he'd do something as dishonorable as hit her from behind!"

"Why is that?"

"Sunry is a decorated war hero! He's a hero of the Republic!"

"Hmm…I'll do all I can to find the real evidence."

"That's all I can ask. The real evidence will prove that Sunry didn't do this."

Kaleb nodded as he walked away with a dozen thoughts floating in his head.

_If Sunry was a war hero…wouldn't he be able to defend himself? Cripple or no, the body remembers fighting techniques and acts on instinct-especially when in danger. And the fact that he's old really doesn't prove anything since a blaster was used. Jolee was ancient, but he could still hold his own against multiple opponents…then again being a jedi and living in those shadow lands for who knows how long does help. _He scratched the side of his head. _This isn't enough to go on. I need to talk to Sunry and get his direct testimony, but first I need to contact the others. _

They still didn't know that he had been freed and he didn't want Bastila to be sick with worry.

Kaleb smirked as he took out his comlink. "Let me ease her troubled mind."

---------------------------------------------

Carth heard the beeps of his comlink and opened it hurriedly.

"Kaleb?"

The pilot saw him smile widely on the screen.

"_The one and only."_

"Where are you? Are you alright?"

"_Hey, calm down. I expected Bastila to be the one that was all distressed." _

"You might get what you asked for. She retreated to her room, where she's probably pacing around."

"_Awww, I got her to pace around nervously. I'm touched." _

Carth laughed. "Wanna put her out of her misery?"

"_I don't know. I'm tempted to ask you to tell her that I was found guilty." _

"You're an ass."

"_It's all part of the charm, but…that is kinda evil; even for my standards. I'll talk to her through our bond so you won't have to knock on her door and die." _

"You're a lifesaver, but what are you doing now?"

"_Oh, you know, trying to get this Republic war hero freed. He's Jolee's friend and has been accused of killing this sith woman. I'm about to go ask him some things that I need cleared up." _

"What things?"

"_Well, they say Sunry was fleeing a hotel that Elassa, the sith, was shot in. First of all, why would he run if he hadn't killed her?" _

"It's not the best situation to be caught in. A lot of people panic."

"_That's a probable cause, but if a woman had died of some kind of…complications, wouldn't your first instinct be to alert the authorities?" _

"Probably if she wasn't a Sith. He's a Republic war hero and there's a dead Sith on the floor in Manaan. The Selkath aren't known for their forgiveness factor. Also, Sunry surely would have not cared."

"_I don't believe that one. If he didn't care about this woman, why was he in a hotel room with her?" _

The pilot rubbed the stubble on his chin. "That's a good question. Do you suspect an affair?"

Kaleb grinned. _"You've read my mind. I can find no other reason why a sith and a Republic would want to hang out, but I'm not jumping to conclusions. I have to stay impartial until I hear everyone's testimony…or until someone pisses me off." _

"Well, I don't want to hold you up from your hectic schedule."

"_But I do. I'm gonna force myself to relax if it kills me." _

Carth chuckled. "We don't want to have to go through that again."

"_You're right, but at least if I'm dead, I'll be sleeping. But since I've got a feeling that's not going to happen for a while, let me get this over with. Oh yeah, before I forget; what was that place you ate at?" _

"Oh man, I think it was Jabari's Eatery or Jabari's Mess Hall."

"How are you not going to remember the name of the place?"

"I know, but it was in West Central. Across from the courthouse, there's a strip of shops along the waterline."

"Well, isn't that just the greatest thing? I just came from the courthouse and I'm all up for going explorer today."

Yeah, so were Mission and Zalbaar, but before I left them we went to that restaurant. I did take into account that a copper Twi'lek with black rings around her headtails ran the store, though. They didn't have any of that fish food that the Selkath eat, but they did have the best nerf burgers you've ever tasted."

"_Ugh, stop! You're torturing me with even the thought of nerf burgers! The mouth is watering and everything!" _

"Sorry, but just think; you'll have so much fun playing Arbiter before you can sink your teeth in such a heavenly substance."

Carth switched off his com before Kaleb could finish giving him his rude hand gesture.

--------------------------------------

/Bastila is worried about me/ The young man teased. /You do care./

/Kaleb? Where are you and are you safe/ She asked, ignoring his comment.

/That's me, I'm right outside the Ahto prison facilities, and I'm safe…but I'd feel a whole lot safer if you were with me./ He ended in a sultry tone.

Bastila could feel that stupid smirk he had on his face coming through their bond. She was worried sick about the thought of him dying, having to think of how her life would be without him, and how scary it was to see how much his presence affected her now. And it infuriated her to no end that he was so carefree about the whole thing.

/You were about to die less than thirty minutes ago and all you can do is make petty flirtations/

/Hold on, this is one of those trick questions, isn't it? Um…Kashyyyk! Final answer/

/Well, I can see what little brains you posses have not been altered./

/Ouch! That one bruised the manly pride/

/I highly doubt that insufferable trait of yours can be scathed so easily./

/You're right, of course, but you have to come with me. You have no choice either way./

/How do you figure/

/You have to do what I say because I'm older than you. I'm your elder, so respect me, dammit/ He thought in a perfect imitation of Jolee.

/Please. You're hardly an elder when you are only two years older than someone./

/Two years, thirty, or five. The fact remains that I'm still older and wiser./

/I wouldn't push it with wiser; we all know that's a lie. But if you must be technical, and you're not a Jedi; then I am still your commanding officer./

Kaleb sniggered. /Ooh, I like the sound of that. Yes, ma'm. Reporting for duty anytime you call for it./

/And in some vulgar way that is beyond me, you can make even that sound suggestive./

/Oh, I'm sorry. Let me make it up to you. We could get a private room, so you can punish me for my insolence. Maybe a good…spanking/

/You'd just love that wouldn't you/

/As much as could be expected. But don't worry, you'll like it too./

He could almost see the glare that she would have on her face right now from his comment.

/Hilarious. I bet you think your so smart for that one./

/I like to think of it more as being witty, but every guy has the ability of making anything sound naughty./

/And unfortunately, I don't have a hard time believing that./

/_I bet you don't have a hard time believing it_./ He told her in a seductive manner. /You take in stuff _real_ easily."

/Whatever you are planning to do, I'm sure that you'll be fine by yourself./ She told him firmly, attempting to cut his little game short because she didn't like the affect it was having on her. /I will go to Roland and tell him that we were successful on our task./

/Hmm…that is some smart thinking, but…/ He tsked. /Wouldn't it be so much better to be able to give him the module that he wanted him in the first place/

Bastila groaned, forgetting that he had the data module while Kaleb laughed.

/I guess that means you have to pay me a visit anyway./ He sighed. /You know, even I'm getting sick of winning all the time…wait, what am I saying? No, I don't./

/Just stay in the cantina. I'll meet you there momentarily./

/Ooh, is that an order, commander/

She scoffed. /If that will get you there faster, why not? Just be on time so I can receive the module./

/What seeing me isn't good enough/

/Goodbye, Kaleb./ Bastila thought to him before closing her side of the bond.

He shook his head. "Never stopping to enjoy herself, even once."

Kaleb walked up to the prison's entry where a Selkath was guarding it.

The alien moved aside. **_/You may come and go as you please, Arbiter-you will find the door unlocked./ _**

The young man nodded and walked in, immediately spotting an old man in a cage to his left.

"Are you the infamous Sunry?"

"Who are you?" The man asked warningly. "What are you doing here?"

"Hey calm down. Don't want you getting a heart attack before your trial."

"What do you know about the trial?"

Kaleb scoffed. "I know enough-I'm your Arbiter. Your wife asked me to come and I'm a…captive of Jolee Bindo. You know bald head and a complete smart ass?"

"Jolee? What's he doing here on Manaan? Never mind, I'm just glad he's here. So is this some kind of prison break?"

"Oh no, I just got out of jail myself and I'm not expecting to go back in this lifetime."

"That's actually a good thing because we wouldn't have gotten far enough before the Selkath cut us down."

"Yeah…well, like I said, I'm your Arbiter."

"I guess if you're gonna be my Arbiter, you'll need to hear what happened. I might as well start at the beginning."

"Good as place to start as any."

"The case is a complete frame-up." Sunry started.

_Of course it is. _Kaleb thought.

The old man continued. "Anyone looking at the evidence could see that-or so I thought. But the Selkath seem to think that there's enough to go to trial."

"What about the witnesses at the hotel?"

"There are no witnesses. All that evidence against me is circumstantial…and completely flawed."

"Then let's go over the real evidence."

"Well, I was at the hotel, I admit. And I did meet Elassa there that night-but it's not what you think!"

Kaleb gave a mischievous smirk. "And just what am I thinking?"

"Uh…nothing. I-I was working with Republic Intelligence. We were pretending to feed info to the Sith while I turned Elassa into a double agent working for us. It was going well too…until she turned up dead."

"I bet that was inconvenient."

"Yeah, it was. Hmm…maybe the Sith found out I was turning her and had her eliminated…"

He had stared at the ground with a thoughtful expression on his worn face, but quickly recovered and looked back at Kaleb.

"But, let's look at the facts that they've given."

The young man nodded. _Well, he's a good actor; I'll give him that. _

"Go ahead."

"Elassa was brutally killed. Think about that-she was a Sith, trained in battle and I'm just a crippled old man!"

"Yes, an old crippled Republic war hero that was probably trained equally or better."

"My war injuries make it difficult for me to walk and even hold things." Sunry raised his hands to eye-level. "See how my hands are shaking! How could I kill a Sith warrior at close quarters?"

"That is the one thing that is unlikely."

"Exactly. Further: They say they found my Hero's Cross at the crime scene. Would I leave my war medal behind if I killed someone? Even I'm not that stupid."

"That has yet to been proven, but why was your medal there in the first place?"

"The Sith obviously planted the Cross. And what about the lack of forensic evidence? Skin and hair samples, clothing fibers-why isn't there anything like that at the crime scene?"

"That…is strange."

"So strange that it sounds like a frame-up. I hope you can see how the Sith are manipulating the Selkath, and even probably you, to set up against me!"

Kaleb let out a dark chuckle. "Sir, I manipulate people-even you; not vice versa. The only thing you need to worry about is your testimony. Such a task to make sure you say the same things every time."

"Task? I don't know what you're talking about, but besides that, is there anything else I can help you with? I want my Arbiter to be well prepared before we go to trial."

"I bet you do, but yeah, there are some things that don't make sense to me."

"Go ahead, ask…ask what you need to. I've got nothing to hide."

"Right…" The young man trailed with disbelief. "The judges said that you left after the blaster shot was fired."

"How would they know! They weren't there!" Sunry exclaimed. "I heard some of the witnesses said that too, but I swear she was alive when I left!"

"So you're saying all the witnesses that were there and the judges are wrong?"

"I just wonder if the Sith have been putting pressure on people to get them to convict me…It wouldn't surprise me at all. They've had it in for me since the war…You should ask around about that…they might admit to helping the Sith under pressure. I personally think you'd be better off interviewing the Sith themselves. Maybe you could find some proof that they planted evidence to frame me-though that might mean finding a way into the Sith Embassy."

"Yeah, I've been there and, who woulda thought, not the most interesting place in the galaxy. Also, the Selkath locked it down. Nobody's going in there for a while, but I'm gonna go and question more people."

"Very well. There is still much for you to do before the trial. Once you have gotten enough evidence, though, just go tell the warden we're ready. The sooner I get out of this cell, the better."

"I'll work on it." Kaleb told him as he left the prison and headed over to the shops.

_I know I should head over to the cantina, but…It would take Bastila a while to get all the way here from the ship; so I'll just get a nerf burger and go on from there._

As the young man strolled down the street, his mind wandered on the trial. Some things in Sunry's story still didn't add up. Almost everybody was saying that he left after the blaster shot, the reason why Elassa had his medal, and if she didn't; how did the Sith gain possession of such a precious memento at all? Another thing about Elassa bothered him. If she was a double agent, why wouldn't she go straight to the Republic?

_Because then it would look suspicious. _He answered. _But an old man and a young lady going into a hotel isn't? Even if no one really paid attention or stayed there, why a hotel of all places? Unless there was something else to hide…_

That was a mystery, but a real enigma was the factor of there being no forensic materials at the crime scene.

_No tiny specks of forensics at all? That's nearly impossible…unless somebody cleaned it up like the-_

Kaleb was jerked back to reality when he heard a very familiar roar and young feminine voice coming from a store that had exotic music floating from it.

"And that's why I told you not to touch it, Big Z. I knew you wouldn't like the way it sounds."

"**I was the one who told you that I wouldn't like it in the first place! But no, you wanted me to try it out!" **

"Whoa, there's no need to yell."

Kaleb entered the shop and saw Mission holding some strange woodwind instrument and an irritated Zalbaar.

He smiled. "Haven't seen you guys in a while."

Mission turned her face to the voice and smiled back. "Hey, Kaleb! We meant to check in, but…I guess we kinda got distracted."

"It's ok; I get distracted all the time. Like right now for instance. I'm supposed to be meeting Bastila at the cantina, but I decided to get some food instead."

"Oh, there's a place right next door that has great food."

"Yeah, I've heard. That's exactly were I was headed, but this place is cool too. Is it some kind of music store?"

"Yup. We just got here too, but this place has every instrument you could ever think of! I was just looking at this weird flute thingy, but Big Z wanted to know what it sounded like."

"**That is a lie!" **The large Wookie roared. **"Mission wanted to hear the instrument and urged me to use it!" **

Kaleb laughed. "Well, it must have not been the best thing in the world, since you got Zalbaar all riled up."

"Aw, he's always like that when he's hungry. Why do you think we're so close to a restaurant?"

Zalbaar just growled and went over to an opposite corner of the store.

"I think you may have hurt his feelings, Mission."

"He'll be alright. Big Z's just crappy from starvation."

"You're probably right, but you said that have all kinds of instruments here, right? I wonder if they have any guitars."

"You never told me that you could play the guitar." The Twi'lek asked in amazement.

"I haven't? Hmm…guess it just never came up in a conversation. You can't just say: "Hey, I heard that it's gonna rain today and just a little heads up; I play the guitar! Don't forget your umbrella!"

Mission chuckled. "I guess that would be kind of awkward."

"Just a tad, but since we're on the subject; I'll just tell you the background story. My mom bought me a little black one for my fourth birthday that had my initials carved into it. It automatically became my most prized possession since it was hard enough to get any luxuries in Deraila, but even more important, it was from her."

Mission grinned. "You're a momma's boy? That's so cute!"

Kaleb snapped his fingers. "Curses, you've uncovered my deepest secret! Now I'll have to start a new life and get a new name. Uh…Belak! Yeah, that's it!"

She rolled her eyes. "Just finish the story."

"I pretty much self-taught myself through the whole thing since there was no way I could get lessons. I got good over the years, but…after my mom passed away I had to sell it so I could pay rent." He saw the shock that whipped over the Twi'lek's face and shook his head. "It's ok; it happened a long time ago. Life goes on, as I'm sure you know since your parents died too."

"Yeah, but I didn't know them to begin with. I'm not saying that I don't care about their deaths, but it's easier to lose something that you never had."

"But the best thing would be not to lose anything at all."

A loud noise suddenly erupted in the store, abruptly ending the two's conversation. Both Kaleb and Mission turned around to see a young male Bith fumbling over some packages that fell off a counter.

(_Stupid, stupid! I'm such a clumsy fool!_) The alien muttered to himself as he picked up the boxes.

Kaleb chuckled softly and Mission threw him a dirty look.

"Um…are you ok?" She asked him, not meaning to startle him a second time and make him drop the boxes again.

The young man lifted his hand slightly and used the Force to stop the boxes from falling to the floor once again.

The Bith's eyes widened in fear as he saw this phenomenon. (_Please, do not hurt me! I make no trouble with the Sith, but only wish to run my store._)

"You think I'm a sith?" He laughed as he placed the packages back on the large counter. "Don't worry; I'm not gonna hurt you or shut your store down. Actually, I might give you business if you have what I'm looking for."

The male Bith's relief was palpable as he stood up. (_You mean to tell me that you wish to buy from me?_)

Kaleb shrugged. "Sure, if I find something I like."

The alien nodded. (_I am sorry for the confusion before, but the Sith around here always tend to heckle whenever they can get the chance._) He cleared his throat. (_Please allow me to start over. Welcome to Haklar's Music Emporium. The best music store on Manaan…well it's the only one-but it is still the best!_)

"You said this was your store, so you must be Haklar."

(_Yes, that's me. My full name is Haklar Disklas, but that's not as catchy, you see._)

Mission nodded. "Nice to meet you, Haklar. My name's Mission and this is Kaleb."

The young man gave him a two fingered wave to acknowledge himself. "That's me."

Haklar nodded. (_It is very nice to meet both of you also. And I will answer and provide you with anything that I can offer.) _

Kaleb grinned. "Hey, thanks. I was wondering if you had any guitars."

(_All kinds. Which ones are you more inclined to?) _

"It can be an acoustic and I want the best one you got."

The Bith's face brightened. (_I have just the thing! It has just arrived yesterday, but I'm sure it will be to your liking.) _He went in the backroom behind the counter. (_It'll just take a moment.) _

The young Twi'lek nudged him in the shoulder. "The best he has, huh?"

He smiled sheepishly. "I deserve to splurge on myself ever now and then."

Haklar returned with a shiny, all black guitar with rich crème outlines. It was a six-string and had a tan leather strap connected to it already.

Kaleb was in awe as his mouth was agape. "I…I can't believe it. That guitar…it looks just like the one my mom got me minus the scratches."

"Wow, what luck." Mission told him as she eyed the instrument again. "It's so beautiful."

The Bith smiled. (_Not only that, but it's the best one on the market right now.) _

"I bet…" The young man blinked to wake himself out of his momentary stupor. "I don't care how much it costs; I've got to have it."

(_Well, the price is 700 credits, but since you are a new friend and you have such good taste; I'll give it to you for half.) _

"350? Are you serious?" Kaleb asked in utter disbelief. "That's a steal!"

He dug into his pocket and pulled out three hundred credit clips and one fifty.

He handed to him eagerly. "Here you go and thanks!"

Haklar shook his head. (_It was my pleasure, Kaleb. It was the least I could do for you, being one of the only people that was nice to me.)_

"You're one to talk about being nice! You're practically giving me this guitar!"

The alien chuckled._ (Would you like me to wrap it in a box or do you want it like it is?_)

"I'll take it as it is. I wanna show this off to everybody."

The Bith came from behind the counter, dub into a bucket and took out a pick, and handed him the jet black instrument. (_Thank you for your purchase and here is a complimentary pick on me._)

Kaleb smiled as he obtained the guitar, strapped it so that it lay across his back, and took the pick from Haklar's hand. "Wow, I need to get out of here before you give me your store. But seriously, thank you for this." He was about to leave, but turned around. "Oh, Mission, I almost forgot. We're going to be staying at the Republic Embassy in East Central during our time here. Spread the word to the others for me."

She nodded. "Not a problem! I'm just happy that we're sleeping somewhere else for a change!"

He waved them off as he left the music shop. "See you later and thanks again!"

----------------------------------------

Kaleb, now in a considerably good mood, hurried over next door so he could grab some food. He walked into the quaint little restaurant and was surprised that it was so full.

"Pretty much everybody, but the Selkath is here."

He looked around and saw that none of the tables were empty either.

"Well, I guess I'm getting my stuff to go." He mumbled to himself as he stood at the empty counter.

Nobody was behind the counter at the moment so he took this time to go through the holo menu. He pressed a button that read 'Human' and rows of foods appeared on the display.

"Ok, nerf burgers…" His eyes scrolled down the chart until he found what he was looking for. "Here we go! And…yes! They have double nerf burgers with space cheese! Hmm…I'll get one for Bastila too. I know she has to be starving."

A copper female Twi'lek that couldn't have been more than twenty suddenly appeared from the kitchen behind the counter. "Sorry for the wait, mister we're-wow, nice guitar! Did you get that next door?"

He grinned. "Yeah, the owner was really generous and practically gave me the thing."

"Well, again I'm sorry for the wait. We're really backed up today."

"You must be Jabari and that's alright. I just finished deciding on what I wanted."

"Wow, good eye. A lot of people don't figure out who I am until I tell them and most think I'm just another waitress instead of the owner."

"Oh, don't be impressed; I cheated. My friend came here before and told me what you looked like and your name. He also told me that you make some really good food."

"That's right! We have the best non-Selkath food around! But talk is cheap; I'll prove it to you by taking your order."

"I'd like one double nerf burger and a single one. Both of them with space cheese and I'd like it to go. Also, make 'em as fattening and heart attack prone as you can."

She laughed. "You're funny."

"That's what people tell me."

The Twi'lek smiled. "Would you like to get some drinks with that?"

"Uh…" He skimmed through the drinks on the menu. "I'll have a large mocha coffee."

She took a datapad out of her light blue apron and removed a stylus from behind her ear. "Is that all?"

"Yup; unless you can just get a large tub of fat for me to eat."

Jabari chuckled as she scribbled his order down. "I'll be back in a sec with your food."

She retreated to the kitchen once again and Kaleb sat on a stool that was connected to the counter.

"What time is it?" The young man looked at a clock on the opposite wall and scoffed. "It's 7:45 already? How time flies when you're waiting for food."

He wondered if Bastila was at the cantina already, but in some weird way, he knew she wasn't. Or it could have been that she would have chewed him out through their bond for not being there yet.

"Here you go!" The owner/waitress came out with a white bag and large drink and set it down on the counter.

"That was fast."

"You gotta be quick if you want to survive in this business."

"I guess that's true with all the customers you have." He grabbed the bag with his left hand. "How much?"

"That'll be 12 credits even."

Kaleb handed her the money with his right hand. "Thanks. You don't know how long I've been waiting to eat today." As soon as his hand was free, he picked up his large mocha.

"Then I hope you like it."

He was about to thank her again, but she had left to take a Rodian's order. He just shrugged it and headed over to the cantina.

----------------------------------------

Kaleb glanced at all the booths and corner tables in the cantina, but still didn't see Bastila.

"How dare she be late for our rendezvous?" He chuckled. "Ah well, her lost, and I do need to talk to Shaelas."

Kaleb walked up to the Selkath, who was still in the same spot, but was now glancing out at the ocean. The young man tapped his shoulder to draw his attention.

_**/Human, you return./ **_

He laughed. "You almost sound surprised."

_**/It cannot be denied. No offense is being offered, but you humans are not the most trustworthy of breeds./ **_

"That's true, but if I do not have your trust, at least you can know me as dependable."

_**/All I can do is hope. Have you any info for me? Have you discovered the fate of the missing Selkath youth? Have you news of my daughter, Shasa/ **_

"I have this info and more, Shaelas."

_**/Than that is excellent. You have done well. What have you learned/ **_

"The Sith have been training the Selkath youth in the ways of the dark jedi."

_**/Yes…this makes sense. It is a wonder I did not see this before. Manaan's greatest strength is our neutrality. If Malak brainwashes our youth and indoctrinates them in the ways of the Sith, he will have a strength among the Selkath people-strong enough to seize control over Manaan and our kolto/ **_

"Good job." Kaleb congratulated as he took the datapad he found in the sith base. "I even have this to prove what you just said true."

He handed it to him and Shaelas accepted it graciously.

_**/You have my thanks, but my daughter Shasa-she too has been indoctrinated into the Sith camp/ **_

"She was there, but my companions and I have convinced your daughter to turn her back on the sith's manipulative ways. Do not fret; she and her friends are safe."

_**/Human, if you speak the truth I am forever in your debt! And yet, my joy is tempered by the knowledge that the Sith still walk freely on Manaan. Hopefully the testimony of my daughter and this datapad that you have provided will be enough proof of their actions./ **_

"Well, the judges have already taken measures into stopping their Embassy, so that's a step in the right direction."

Bastila entered the cantina, spotting Kaleb and Shaelas conversing.

**_/You have done much for me, human./ _**The Selkath told him thankfully. **_/Here are the credits I promised you-I only wish I had more to give./ _**

"Then your wish is in vain because you will keep your credits." The young man told him with a smile. "It was no arduous task since I had to go to the sith's embassy either way. Also, I could never collect payment for me finding your daughter."

**_/You refuse my reward/ _**Shaelas asked shocked. **_/Truly, human, you are of a noble breed/ _**

"Your praise is appreciated, but as I said, I wouldn't allow you to pay me for this. If something precious was stolen from me, I would only hope that the person who helped me out wouldn't want a reward either."

_**/That is most true. Hmm…maybe my species has underestimated your kind./ **_

Kaleb grinned. "Well, I'm glad you feel that way. A lot of us can't be trusted, but there's a good nut thrown in every few millennia."

The Selkath did a sort of gurgling remark that he could only take as a laugh.

_**/Please excuse me now, human. I most go speak to the Manaan authorities about the Sith plot and what they have done to my beloved daughter./ **_

Shaelas gave a slight bow and left the area.

"That was truly a noble act. I know you won't care, but the Council would have been pleased."

Kaleb smirked, but quickly hid it as he turned towards Bastila.

"It wasn't that big of a deal." He told her coolly. "The same should be done for anybody's kids that suddenly go missing."

"Well, yes, of course. As you had said, anyone would want the same done for them and nothing is as missed until it's gone." She raised her eyebrow. "I hope that what you have said was not just for show, but that you actually understand what your words mean."

"Uh…" He stated goofily. "That if we had children, they'd be ridiculously cute, so someone would actually want to save them?"

Bastila replied with a look of complete exasperation thinking, 'what was his motivation for life', but then shook her head. "No. I refuse to comment on what you've said, so just give me the module."

He chuckled. "What?"

"The _module_, Kaleb."

He placed it in her hand and re-closed his knapsack. "Fine, if you want to hold it so badly-" He suddenly started laughing dumbly. "I said hold _it._" Kaleb laughed again."_Whew_…almost missed that one!"

She groaned and started to walk away, but he followed her.

"Don't laugh too hard now, Bastila."

She turned around and glared at him. "Is there any reason why you're following me?"

He sniffed and wiped fake tears away from his eye. "It was so…_lonely_ in jail, Bastila! I had…_no_ one to talk to!"

She rolled her eyes. "You poor thing."

"I know, right! So now, I fear…_abandonment_!" He started pounding on a wall and whining like a baby while stomping his feet in a fake temper tantrum. "I don't _wanna _go alone! Don't make me! No! No! Whaaa!"

She managed not to laugh at his display, but couldn't stop the smile spreading on her face. "I do not know you right now."

A little crowd of Selkath came and stared at the two of them in confusion as Kaleb stopped and brushed himself off calmly.

"But, really." He told her with complete seriousness. "I need to hear the stories of the witnesses at the hotel for the murder. So we're going the same way."

She nodded as if understanding something for the first time. "You're crazy, that has to be it."

He smiled as he walked up beside her. "Probably, but look at this new guitar I got."

Kaleb stopped walking and pulled his instrument around so she could see it.

She eyed the ebony glossed guitar. "I didn't know that you could play."

He smirked. "There are a lot of things I can do that you have yet to discover."

"That's true enough and it seems that on every planet your skills always help us out." She scoffed. "Is there anything you can't do?"

"Aw, you're gonna make me brag. Besides, it's not like you don't have any talents."

"Well, yes, but they're hardly anything compared to things you can accomplish."

"Do go on."

"You're a mechanic, hacker, tactician, great at Pazaak, excellent swoop jockey, an expert at mines, and you have to be the most persuasive talker I know."

"Almost all of them. I'm a master chef too. Speaking of, are you hungry? I got us something to eat."

"Now you're lying." Bastila stated skeptically.

"No, they're right in this bag."

"Not about the food, about you being able to cook."

"Uh-uh. You can ask Carth; I know my way around the kitchen. Before I had credits from those duels on Taris, I was cooking our meals." He dug through one of the bags and took out a small carton. "I got a double nerf burger and I got you a single one."

"Why do I have to get the single one?" She asked jokingly. "Are you trying to say I'm fat?"

"Huh? Whoa, no-_no!_" If he knew anything about women, it was never to say that they were fat. _At all._ "You're nowhere near being fat. You could even gain weight if you wanted to."

Bastila gave a fake glare. "Oh, so now I'm too skinny; is that what you're trying to say?"

"I didn't mean it like that!"

She took the carton out of his hands. "Then you won't mind me taking this, will you?"

He shook his head, still trying to figure out how his nerf burger got into her hands, but just let it go as he got the other one. He opened the slightly smaller carton, picked up the burger, and took a huge bite out of it.

_Mmmm…meatastic._

Kaleb looked over at his companion as he took another bite and almost choked from laughter. She had broken her sandwich in half and only took modest nibbles of it. After she completely chewed her food, she repeated the process over again.

"Your dining manners are impeccable, my lady." He teased in a mock accent. "Wherever did you learn to be so cultured?"

The Jedi was confused. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about the way you're eating your burger." He explained in his normal voice. "We're not at some fancy diplomatic party, so just eat the darn thing."

"I will eat _my_ food, however _I_ wish. Just because you have no etiquette when you…_devour_ your food does not mean that I have to do the same."

"Well, then you're the only one who uses '_etiquette_' when eating a nerf burger. It was made to be eaten in the sloppiest and fastest way possible."

"I don't know; maybe I want to taste my food instead of inhale it like you do."

"And I inhale it because I haven't eaten anything all day. I couldn't really care less about someone watching me as long as I know another bite of burger is gonna go in my mouth."

"Are you trying to say I'm not comfortable with myself?" Bastila asked defensively.

"I just think you should be who you really are no matter whom you're around." He told her simply as he took another chomp of his sandwich.

_Why would he say that? Does he know that I'm hiding something from him? _"And what exactly do I act like?"

He finished the burger and placed the empty carton into the white bag. "Well…it's like you always hide a piece of yourself away from people. You never give the whole person."

Her eyes widened slightly when she heard this, but she quickly composed herself. "I am a Jedi, Kaleb. We are trained to never let our emotions get the best of us, so it may seem to you that I am guarded."

Bastila saw him pause and was alleviated when he finally nodded.

"I guess so." He stated apathetically.

She sighed as they both gave into silence. _How long could this last before he finds out? My constant sidestepping of the problem until he will give up or lose interest…It will only be a matter of time until he asks a question I simply cannot give an answer to. And…I don't…I don't think I could lie straight to his face anymore… _

She had to break this unbearable silence that allowed her to think on things she didn't even want to imagine happening.

"Um…When did you learn how to cook, Kaleb?"

He smiled slightly. "When I was little, of course. Who do you think fed me when I was young? I had some neighbors and some of my mom's friends bring me food, but on the most part I had to learn to cook for myself." He chuckled. "I'll tell you though; the first couple of dishes were a disaster. One time I tried to make some nerf stew, because I thought: "Hey, it should be easy enough. Its soup, how hard can it be?" Boy was I wrong."

"Was it so horrible?"

"Bastila, the thing tried to attack me."

She laughed. "That is bad."

"You don't know the half of it. Even if what I had cooked didn't commit murder, I still had to eat it." Kaleb shook his head. "And here I thought making your own food would be fun. You know, eating cookies and cake every day. I never even thought about were they came from."

"You thought they just popped out of thin air?"

"I didn't have to think. All I knew was that Mom brought it out to me and I ate it. But enough about my cooking excursions, do I have a fellow chef in my mist?"

"Me?" She gave an amused scoff. "Oh no, I'm terrible in the kitchen."

He opened the door that lead to East Central, motioning her to go first. "I'm shocked. You look like you could cook up a storm."

"Hmm…I guess I could prepare something if it was a life or death situation, but besides that, I wish what you said was true. I don't even think I could boil water without burning something."

He laughed. "That makes no kind of sense! How can you burn water?"

The two walked down the pavilion in East Central and headed towards the back.

"Thank you, Kaleb, I feel so much better now."

"Aw, I'm sorry, but I got an idea. Instead of me taking you out, I'll buy some fresh food and we'll have a cooking lesson."

Bastila winced at the thought. "It's a nice idea, but I don't want to burn the Republic Embassy down. Don't worry, I'm content with non-cooking status."

He gave her his most charming smile. "Come on. I'll guide you through it _step_-by-_step_."

She sighed. "Alright, but…" She smirked wickedly. "If I have to learn how to cook, you have to learn how to swim."

"What?" He almost screamed as his eyes widened dramatically. "That's not fair! You can't die when you're cooking!"

She closed her empty carton and returned it back to the bag. "You can if I'm the one doing it."

"But that's…you can't…I won't…" He sputtered.

She put her hand over her mouth and gasped. "Is the mighty Kaleb scared of something?"

He scoffed. "No! I can learn to swim easy!"

"Then there should be no problem." She smiled, using just as much charm as he had used on her before. "I'll guide you through it _step_-by-_step_."

He felt pleasurable tingles in the pit of his stomach from her expression, but knew he had to focus. There was no way that he was going to swim!

"Yeah, um…after you speak to Roland and I talk to those people in the hotel."

Bastila grinned. "Making up excuses already? We have yet to take our breaks, so after we do that, we can take the rest of the day off for our lessons."

Kaleb scratched the back of his ear. "Well, then that's…great. We both need some downtime and after my cooking class you'll probably be able to make a…bowl of cereal. Hey, if we really make some progress, you'll be able to make some ice."

"And you'll be able to drown decently." She told him as she headed toward the Republic Embassy's door.

"Ooh, touché!" Kaleb exclaimed as the two went their separate ways.

----------------------------------------

"Have you managed to retrieve the data from the droid in the Sith base?" Roland asked Bastila as he looked up at her from his desk.

"We have." She said as she laid the module on his desk.

"Excellent!" The diplomat exclaimed as he inspected the device. "It does not seem to have been tampered with, so the Sith did not manage to copy its contents yet."

"Well, now that you know everything is in order, what do you know about the Star Map?"

"Right. We are not supposed to speak of this, but since you are a Jedi and we have exhausted all the other options, I think we can entrust you with this."

"And just what is it you can entrust me with?"

"As you know, the Republic is fighting for its very existence against the evil of the Sith Empire."

"As are others. Do you think the Jedi have not shared similar or even worse fates?"

"I'm not saying that at all, but you also undoubtedly know, we are doing very poorly. We need much in the way of supplies and material to stem the tide of battle and bring us victory."

"Just what are you getting at?"

"Manaan is the sole source of kolto, the most powerful medical substance in the galaxy. Frankly, we need as much of it as we can get."

"What has the Republic done?" Bastila asked sternly.

"The Selkath conservatives with their neutrality treaties seek to treat the Sith and the Republic equally. This includes kolto exports."

"That is their law so it must be obeyed."

"Yes, but a few more far-sighted Selkath see that if the Sith are ever allowed to win, the galaxy will be plunged into darkness and there would be nothing to stop them from taking Manaan anyway. So…" Roland whispered. "We made a deal…"

"You violated the treaty!" She asked in shock at them disobedience and lack of respect for the Selkath laws.

"Shh! Not so loud! Yes, we violated their treaty, but this is worth it, trust me."

-----------------------------------------

"So you're the one defending Sunry now, eh?" Ingus asked Kaleb. "I guess I got to answer any questions you have too."

"Yeah, that's how that works. Tell me what you saw the night of the murder."

"The Sith woman, Elassa, rented a room in the hotel. An hour or so later, Sunry comes in and goes to her room. A couple of hours later, I hear a blaster shot and see Sunry running. He can't run good 'cause he's a cripple, but still he was going pretty fast."

"Could the blast have went off after he left?"

"No, I don't think so. I mean it's possible, just barely, but I wouldn't say that to the court."

"Unless I want to lose. What do you know about Sunry and Elassa?"

"Elassa used to rent rooms here every week or so. Then Sunry would come by a couple of hours later and stay all night." The hotel owner scoffed. "It doesn't take a genius to figure out was going on."

"Yup, it's pretty darn obvious. That's something I'm gonna have to question him about, but for now, who are the other witnesses?"

"There were only two people in the hotel when it happened. One was a Rodian named Gluupor. Seems like a real dirty, shifty type. Normally I don't let his kind in here-I'm a respectable business man, you know! But…there weren't many people here, so I decided to take a chance. The other is a regular named Firith Me. He's a Pazaak player. Probably an addict, but he claims he's big in some circles. Don't know anything about him other than that."

"Thanks for the info. I'll be going now."

The proprietor nodded. "Well, ok. If you need anything else, I'll be right here."

-----------------------------------------

Roland Wann sat back down in his chair. "We recently began construction of a secret underground facility to harvest kolto directly at its source. We also hope to one day be able to synthesize it effectively. Current techniques are insufficient for the task, so we must mine for it now."

"You clearly want to be discovered by the Selkath if you would mine straight from their deposits." Bastila told him, now sitting in a chair also.

"The amount we take would hardly be noticed, since most is lost naturally anyway. We were nearing completion of the base when the digging teams reported some sort of…obstruction…an ancient building or artifact. Possibly your 'Star Map'. Transmissions, however, haven't been heard from the teams since weeks ago."

"Why have there been no investigations?"

"As you may have noticed, we are hiring a lot of mercenaries around here. Originally they were to be shipped off-world to aid in our fight against the Sith, but they are were used for another purpose. When we lost contact with the station in the Hrakert Rift, we sent our contingent of Republic soldiers down to investigate. None returned…"

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"Hey, my name's Kaleb. How ya doin'? " He greeted Firith Me.

The man eyed him suspiciously. "You with the Selkath? You here to see about the murder too?"

The young man sighed. "Unfortunately. I'm Sunry's Arbiter."

"I told the damn fish everything I knew, what more do you want from me?"

"I promise this will be quick as possible if you just answer my questions. What do you know about Sunry and Elassa?"

"Sunry I only heard of once or twice in passing. Some sort of old-time war hero against the Sith. Seen him around in the hotel too. Going to Elassa's room of course. Kept the rest of the building up half the night with their damn antics usually!"

"Did she room here often?" Kaleb asked, unfazed by Firith's accusation.

"Yes. She rented a room every week or so. Coincidently it was right about the same time that Sunry would show up. They didn't seem all that discreet either."

"Clearly. Almost half the people I've talked to has hinted around that they were having intimate relations."

"I'm not saying anything like that, but Elassa really did make this a 'hoe'tel; if you get my meaning. But hey, what they did in that room, in private, is their business. And there isn't a rule against Sith and Republics seeing each other for personal reasons. Although, if you think her Sith Master didn't know, heh, you must be fooling yourself."

"Elassa's a dark jedi?" Kaleb asked, catching his slip.  
"Uh…no. Elassa was just a regular Sith…but of course she'd have someone above her…Yeah, I didn't see anything!"

"You're a terrible liar, but I won't force you to say something that could get you killed."

Firith Me smiled. "Thanks, At least someone understands."

"What did you see the night of the murder?"

"I was in my room minding my own business with the latest copy Pazaak weekly, checking out the listings for the big tournament that's gonna be held here soon, when I heard a blaster shot. Being still alive-and therefore smart enough not to stick my head out immediately, I didn't go out right away. I looked after a minute and saw Gluupor in the hall by Elassa's room and Sunry run like the wind. You can't tell me that someone who was running like that, and he was pretty fast for a cripple, isn't guilty."

"Alright, no further questions. I'll be going."

"Yeah, well I'll be right here…" The man told him bitterly. "Not like they're letting me go anywhere else."

Kaleb shook his head as he left the room. _Everyone keeps saying that Sunry left after the blaster shot and that he ran fast. He's not as crippled as he leads on, then. _

He went into the next room, spotting Gluupor nervously pacing around.

_This Rodian just looks like he's done something. _The young man thought as faced the alien.

"Hello, Gluupor."

The Rodian's eyes bulged as he looked up at Kaleb in a panic.

(You here with Selkath? You have questions for Gluupor? Gluupor already say everything he knows.)

"Well, Gluupor didn't say everything he knows to me."

(Gluupor tell everything to Selkath. You not know? Gluupor have no reason not to say. Gluupor tell everything. Everything about murder, everything about Sith lady's room.)

"What about Elassa's room?"

(Gluupor just curious…just curious to see what had happened. Gluupor have no reason to go into reason to go into room…no one pay Gluupor to do it.)

Kaleb sighed. This was getting really irritating in a bad way and him being about as smart as a gizka, wasn't helping.

"Who paid you to put something in her room?"

(How you know someone pay Gluupor!)

The young man smiled. "Call it a hunch."

(Well…Sith man came up to Gluupor after murder, before Selkath arrive. He say h give Gluupor good money if Gluupor put medal in Sith hand.)

"And you did it."

(You know what Gluupor do again? You smart.)

"It doesn't take much against you."

(Gluupor good. Gluupor plant evidence and leave no trace. But Gluupor not recognize the Sith man anyway. Gluupor not recognize humans very well.)

"Why didn't you tell the Selkath about this?"

(No use Selkath, so not bother to tell them. Well, that, and the fact the Sith man say he kill Gluupor if Gluupor speaks.) The alien paused and his eyes slowly widened in shock. (Uh…Oh, no…Gluupor think…he can't talk more right now. Gluupor feels the need to lie down…) The alien slumped down on the bed. (Maybe just stay here…)

Kaleb chuckled as he left the alien alone in the room. "Poor bastard. Not smart enough to even lie for himself." He shrugged. "Well, at least I have one positive thing against Sunry for this case, but that's nowhere near enough."

----------------------------------

"What has happened to them?" Bastila asked with concern.

"No one knows." The diplomat answered tiredly. "We have tried hiring mercenaries and sending them down as well, but none of those expeditions have returned either. The reason we really sent that droid underwater, and the reason we needed its data back so badly, was to find out what had happened to the Hrakert Rift station. But now that we have the data back, our operation is in danger of exposure to the Sith. And now I must live up to my end of the bargain."

"Yes, just how will you help us get down there to the Star Map?"

"I took the liberty of having a submarine prepared for your departure." Roland opened a drawer in his desk and took out a card that he passes to her. "Merely use this card to get past the door behind our kolto packing room and enter the sub therein. It has been programmed to take you down to the station, and also to take you back up should you need something."

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Kaleb walked out of the hotel, but was stopped by an anonymous man at the entrance.

"You, Jedi!" He called in a hushed tone. "I hear you are investigating the Sunry murder trial, are you not?"

"Who wants to know?"

"Hmm. This case is not at all that it appears to be. Many currents, might I say, flow beneath the surface."

"…Huh?" Kaleb asked, baffled as to what the man was trying to tell him.

"This murder is much more complicated then it may first appear. Sunry and Elassa are proxies for their governments and both sides want the other to fail. You can see the journey, heh, by the footprints. You understand, yes?"

"I understand that you're creeping me out."

The mysterious man shook his head. "Hmm, dear, dear. I'm saying that both had something to do with it! They've both kept their hands in this from the start!"

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Let us just say that I am an…interested party, and that I have heh, heh…concerns. If you want to get to the bottom of this murder, you might seek information from both the Sith and the Republic, likely in their Embassies."

"They would not just give me this information."

"No, of course not; state secrets are not for sale on the common market. You would have to be, heh, devious to get what you want."

"That's my middle name, but…why should I believe what you say?"

"Because you have no one else to trust?" The man stated more than asked. "Not Sunry, not the witnesses, and certainly not the judges! And, if you take my advice, what have you to lose?"

"Point."

"Heed my advice, Jedi, and you may yet find the truths in this murder."

The mysterious man ran off before Kaleb could ask him anything else.

He scratched his head. "Well, I'm definitely gonna plug that one into the weird category." He looked around. "The strange men are all gone and Bastila's not done yet. Hmm…I do need to talk to Sunry again anyway, so I'll come back later."

Kaleb left the area and headed back over to Ahto East.

----------------------------------------

Bastila nodded. "Thank you, but I think you'll understand it when I say we'll go to the station tomorrow. We've had a very busy day and the last time I was outside, the sun was already setting."

"Of course, of course. I understand that you would want to rest and, as I had told your companion before, you are more than welcome to stay here. We have already prepared four rooms. Three rooms with two beds apiece, and one room with a solitary big bed because of limited space."

"That is more than enough and I thank you for your extreme generosity. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to meet up with my companion and tell him what you have relayed to me."

Roland Wann nodded. "Come whenever you are ready to call it a day. There will be guards outside in the later hours, but they'll know who you are so you'll be okay."

Bastila rose from her seat and headed outside to find her bond-mate.

---------------------------------------

"Ah, I see you're back." Sunry told Kaleb as he saw him enter the jail once again. "Not that I don't appreciate the visit, but I had hoped you were going to speak to the warden so we might begin trial."

"If I had begun the trial, you would have lost from lack of evidence for your cause. Also, I have much more to investigate before we start."

"I grow weary of staring at these bar walls, but I suppose you know what you're doing."

"I would like to think so, but there's something we need to discuss and I'm only gonna ask once. I suggest your answer to be the truth or you'll not only be stuck in that cage, but you won't have an Arbiter."

The old man nodded. "Go ahead and…ask."

"Were you and Elassa having an affair?"

"We…I…Oh, no…"

"Oh no is right." Kaleb told him coldly.

"What this may look like…Yes. Yes, we were having an affair. I know it was wrong, but I'm…I'm a weak man."

The young man was disgusted by his lack of loyalty to his wife. Elora had been standing out there for hours on end and he cheated on her because he was…weak?

"How could you do it?"

It was the only thing Kaleb could say to him at the moment that wasn't violent or brash.

"Elassa was beautiful and young." The old man pleaded. "How was I to resist her charms?"

"_How!_? By going back going back to your wife, Sunry! You're the kind of man that gives us good ones a bad name!"

"Please, I know I made a terrible mistake getting involved with Elassa, but I was going there to break it off with her. I did it, but found out later that she was dead. I don't deserve to go to jail just for having an affair, do I?"

"No…you deserve something much worse."

"You're…right, but I loved her."

"The same way that you loved Elora, right?" The young man asked him in a low voice. "A little tip._ Your _love has no affect on much anymore, so I suggest you find another sympathy trap."

Sunry sighed. "I broke off the affair with Elassa because I loved Elora and knew I had to do it."

"So what? Do you think you should get another medal? The only reason that I even considered defending you was because you were Jolee's friend, but even he couldn't make me like you."

"But-"

"No-" Kaleb cut him off before he could finish. "I'm done here. I'll be back if I find something out."

He left without another word, but stopped when he saw that Elora was still outside.

"Elora, do you know how late it is?" Kaleb asked her concerned.

"No…all that matters is that Sunry has to spend another night in that jail."

He didn't want to ask her about the affair, but…he had to know if she knew about it. She was going to be one of the main witnesses and he didn't want her finding her husband's unfaithfulness out in the courtroom.

"Um…could you tell me what you know about Elassa and Sunry?"

"He started seeing her last year. I…I had my suspicions for a while, but he was careless. Soon everybody knew. But…but…even though I'm sure that harlot was only using him, I know he couldn't have killed her. Sunry came and confessed the affair to me. He said he was going there to break it off-to end it. Maybe the woman attacked him and he had to defend himself?" She asked Kaleb desperately.

"That's…possible, but he was cheating on you. He shouldn't have been there at all."

"Even though he cheated on me, inside he's still the man I loved…_love_…" Elora told him with glazed eyes full of compassion. "He is too kind and gentle to have killed her in cold blood."

"He has killed many sith before."

She shook her head. "No. That was a long time ago, in a war far, far away. He's changed now…settled down. Just please…prove his innocence."

Kaleb walked away, knowing that he wouldn't be able to say anything that would make her see the truth. It was useless to try and make her see something that she wished to be blind to. And this blindness caused by Elora's love for Sunry…she was so…very much like his mother. That man shamelessly slept around with other woman and, like Sunry, hadn't even tried to hide the fact that he did so. Kaleb despised the old man that he had to defend because he was so very similar to the man he hated.

"_Joseph_…" He said aloud, through gritted teeth. "He said that he loved Mom, but he didn't. There's no way that you can have love for someone and then cheat on them relentlessly, knowing that they are defenseless to your actions."

He looked out into the beautiful ocean that had small waves whip through it and sighed. This whole trial-he didn't want to do it anymore. If Sunry was found guilty, they would put him away for life or even kill him. This was only what he deserved but…he couldn't do that to Elora. She would be heartbroken and he wouldn't be the one to do it; he had no right. But really, he didn't know if he could stand to see someone so very miserable from something so evil again. The only thing that love brings to you when it's one-sided-Foolishness and clouded judgment.

Kaleb was knocked out of his plaguing thoughts as he sensed Bastila approaching him.

"I figured that you might have been somewhere around here." She announced as she came up beside him. "You never were one to stay in one place for too long."

He grinned from realizing that she was starting to always have a positive affect on his mood.

"Yeah, if I stay still for long periods of time I'll start twitching. Also I've got a short attention span. I can hardly finish sentences without-ooh!" He abruptly exclaimed. "Look at that wave! It's so awesomely big, man!"

She chuckled. "Silly."

"And damn proud of it, but what did mister 'I'm the Republic diplomat so I'm important' tell you?"

Bastila scoffed. "He informed me that they've made a kolto mining facility since they were so very impatient."

"Golly! Did_ not _see that one coming!" Kaleb told her cynically. "Don't tell me that module we picked up had recordings of their nefarious deeds?"

"Of course. That's why they needed it back so desperately. Roland didn't want the Sith to report them and steal their idea."

"Hmm…so why do I get the distinct feeling that we have to do something else for him?"

"Because we do. He hasn't been receiving anymore transmissions from the scientists down there in the Hrakert Rift station. That's the reason the Republic has been hiring so many mercenaries."

"That's a mystery solved but, I bet he wants us to find out what's happened to them." He groaned loudly. "I just want to relax for two seconds!"

"You'll get more than that since I told Roland that we were tired and would explore the underwater station tomorrow."

Kaleb's eyes brightened as he beamed, but it quickly turned into a blank look.

He slowly turned his face towards hers. "Um, Bastila…please tell me that you didn't say _underwater _station."

She smiled wondering how long it would take him to figure that part out. "I did."

"Under as in submerged in without any escape and water as in wet liquid of death?"

"Yes, but it's not going to be scary because you're going to be learning how to swim, remember?"

"That's…" He had to regulate his breathing as he swallowed to wet his increasingly dry throat. "That's tonight?"

"Mmm-hmm. It's imperative that you learn this skill if we're going down there tomorrow."

"But…I haven't even had time to get a note from a medic yet telling you why I can't do the swimming thing."

"Oh, that's okay. I wouldn't have read it anyway."

"Uh…" He trailed trying to think of any excuse that he could to get out of this. "I don't…have any trunks to swim in! Yeah, that's it! I can't swim without those!"

"I'm pretty sure that you can use your undergarments."

"But _you'll_ be there and I'm _shy_!"

Bastila scoffed. "Really, Kaleb, since when have you ever been shy?"

"Anytime I have to swim!"

She rolled her eyes. "I _swear _to you that I will not look."

"Ok…but if I go in the water in my underwear, they'll stain!" He pleaded pathetically.

"What? How is water going to stain them?"

"It'll make 'em wet and nasty! And then they'll make that slushy noise every time I _move_!"

She rolled her eyes and started to walk away. "Let's go."

"But, _Bastila_!" Kaleb whined as he dragged his feet. "I'm _heavy_ and heavy things sink in water!"

"I don't understand." She told him without turning around. "You do countless of reckless activities daily that constantly threaten your life, but you're scared to swim?"

"That's pretty much it, yeah."

She sighed as she turned a corner into East Central.

"Where are we going?" He asked her curiously as he followed.

"To the Embassy."

"They have a pool?"

"Something close to it."

As Bastila and Kaleb approached the Republic base's entrance, two guards saluted them and moved out of the way for them to enter.

The soldier on the right dropped his hand. "Roland has informed us of your arrival and everything is all set up with your rooms."

She nodded. "Has the rest of our party arrived yet?"

"Yes, they have ma'm. We have showed told them their sleeping quarters."

She thanked them as she walked past and her bond-mate reluctantly followed.

"Um…excuse me, but are you ok, sir?" The soldier on the left replied to the miserable looking young man.

Kaleb looked up slightly. "Oh yeah. Everything's fine…unless you consider the fact that I'm gonna die."

"Die? Are you in danger, sir?"

"Kaleb, I'm waiting." Bastila called out sharply from inside.

He tried to smile at the Republic soldier, but failed miserably. "You know with her, you never really know."

The young man left the two confused soldiers to re-join his companion. As he walked, he noticed that Roland wasn't at his desk anymore and must have retired to his private chambers.

"Is this really all that necessary?" He asked as a last resort as they entered the submersible area.

"I've already told you that it is. You never know what might happen down there when we're surrounded by water, so you must learn how to swim."

Kaleb sighed, realizing there was no way to get out of this lesson. "Can I at least write out my will before I get in?"

She stopped at the edge of the 'pool' and finally turned around to face him with an irritated expression. "You are exaggerating before you have even tried it yet! I have told you that I would be guiding you through this step-by-step."

Kaleb smirked as he gave her his 'I know you didn't just say what I think you did.' look. "So that has to mean that you'll be getting in there with me, right? I mean, that's the only real way that you can accurately give me this lesson."

Bastila tried to stop the heat that she felt rising to her cheeks from his comment, but knew she was failing. "I am…fully capable of teaching you from up here."

He shook his head. "Uh-uh, that starship won't fly. I was promised the deluxe full-on hands edition. I'm not getting in the water unless you come in there with me." His eyes sparkled with mischief as he drew closer. "And why do I get the distinct feeling that you don't have a swim suit either?" His smirk grew as he snapped his fingers. "Must be an epidemic, but…I guess your underwear will do. Don't worry, I promise I'll look."

She glared at him, astounded by his pure arrogance. "Where do you get off making demands when I'm the one offering to teach you how to swim in the first place? If you do not get in the water than you just will not learn how to swim; it's as simple as that!"

Kaleb sniggered as he removed the leather strap of his guitar and gently placed it against a metal column. "Oooh, yes! Please get aggressive with me! But seriously, I was just kidding." He took his knapsack off his neck and dropped it to the ground. "Unfortunately, I'll be way too preoccupied with my life being in constant jeopardy to enjoy your half-nakedness." The young man started to take off his red mesh shirt as he walked a little ways away. "Hey, if it makes you feel better, I'll even go in first."

He tossed the shirt, un-strapped his boots and kicked them off, pulled down his khaki drawstring pants, and stepped out of them.

"Ahh! Sweet freedom!" He exclaimed as he turned around and flexed in front of his bond-mate. "Impressive, huh?"

Bastila blushed and rapidly shifted her eyes to the ceiling. "Would you _just_ get in the water?"

"Why?" He raised an eyebrow. "Don't you enjoy the view?"

"_Kaleb get in the water_!" She shouted at him in irritation.

He groaned. "If I have to."

Kaleb headed over to the metallic steps that lead into the water and started to descend.

As soon as the water hit his feet he shivered.

"Cold! Really Cold!"

His teeth chattered as he slowly entered his whole body in the frigid water, but still held on tightly to the metal bars.

"Um…" He trailed nervously. "I have no control over my legs anymore and I'm…uh…sorta not comfortable with that." The young man suddenly jumped and grabbed the other railing. "Something just touched my leg!"

She scoffed as she removed the metal clasps from her hair. "The only thing that touched your leg was water."

"It didn't feel like water." He told her in a panic. "Aren't there firaxan sharks in these waters?"

Bastila rolled her eyes. "Just calm down. I'll in there in a little bit." She reassured as she loosened the tie of her robe.

Kaleb grinned widely from what he was seeing. "Oh no, take your time. I don't want you to feel rushed."

She threw him a disgusted glare and he sighed.

"Alright, alright; I'm turning around." He carefully rotated his arm so he wouldn't let go of the railing, but could turn also. "Shoot a guy with a blaster for trying to make someone comfortable." He mumbled, fully turned around now.

"While I'm getting ready, you should try to let go off those rails."

"Whoa, one step at a time! It takes a lot of mental preparation for me even think about letting go."

She scoffed. "How much preparation do you need? Just let go of the bar."

"But why, Bastila? This bar is my friend; its done nothing to harm me. I love my bar and it loves me!" He exclaimed in a country accent. "And ain't no one gonna take us apart, no way no how!"

"Did you get it out?"

He grinned as he unconsciously let go of the railing. "Aw, come on, not even a chuckle for that one? I thought it was pretty gosh darn funny."

She folded her robe and leggings into a neat pile. "You think everything you say or do is amusing. You pretty much just crack yourself up."

"You're right, but I'm just too funny for my own good."

"And, unfortunately, ever one else's too."

Bastila gently scooted herself into the 'pool' and smiled when she was next to him. "I'm impressed. You even did it without any assistance."

_What? _He thought baffled, but then saw that he was…in open water…

As his brain processed the situation, Kaleb looked down at his hands and saw that they weren't holding anything either…

He paused briefly and nodded his head in understanding. "Hmm…I seem to be swimming."

She was shocked by his reaction. "Wow. You're handling this far better than I thought you would."

The young man's eyes widened considerably as his breaths became faster.

"Kaleb?" She asked worried. "It's going to be okay. I'm her with you, so you don't have to pani-"

He wailed his arms and legs frantically. "Water-every-where- can't swim-gonna-drown." He told her in-between each rapid intake of air.

Bastila swam in front of him and held his arms still. "You won't drown, but you have to stop flailing your arms or you're going to sink."

She looked at him, but his eyes were glued to the water beneath him and his legs were still moving urgently.

"Kaleb! You have to look at me!" She commanded, while she positioned his head to a place where their eyes met. "You have to calm down!"

He finally met her piercing blue-gray eyes and tried to regulate his breathing as if in a trance.

"Good, that's it, but you have to stop your legs too."

He shook his head. "I-I can't! I'll-"

"No, you won't because I'm holding on to you." She told him calmly and squeezed his arms to emphasize her point.

The young man looked desperately in her eyes. "I-I know, but-"

"I'm not going to let go of you, but you have to trust me."

"I…" He faltered and took a deep breath. "Of course I do." He exhaled and hugged her tightly. "I trust you with my life, Bastila. You have to know this."

She was…speechless. Her body was numb and yet, she could feel so everything at the same time. All she could do was just stare into his lovely golden eyes, and be engulfed by his compassion. It was the first time that he had actually told her that she had his trust and it felt so…wonderful, so incredible in every way possible. And gazing at him…it was just so apparent that no bond in the galaxy could make it any clearer. Her throat burned since it was so clogged with emotion, but she managed to utter a whisper of gratitude. He just smiled and that said everything that words couldn't.

She didn't want this feeling to end, but reality did, as always, come. She suddenly noticed that Kaleb was hugging her and, consequently, her body was extremely close to his. A wave of awkwardness washed over her as she released her left arm off his shoulder and moved the other down to the lower part of his arm; not wanting to be so close to him, but still having the desire to not ever contact with his skin either.

"I-I'm sorry."

He was lost as to what she was so nervous about until he broke their eye contact and was swiftly reminded of their half-nakedness. Not only that, but his chest was pressed up against her breasts and the whole bobbing in the water thing was adding friction that he could really do without at the moment.

He closed his eyes. _Um…ok, Kaleb old boy. Right now, your mission in life is to not think about her in the least. I do not need anything popping out while I'm this close to Bastila._

He internally smiled. _But it makes no sense how incredibly beautiful she is. If I could just-_

_No! Not really helping the problem here! Gotta concentrate on calming, boring thoughts. _Kaleb concentrated hard on anything that would help him control his almost overbearing desire. _Uh…Vrook's wrinkles, a Rancor, two Banthas mating…um…I got it! Malak's face when he wakes up. _He sighed to himself. _Ahhh! That did it! _

Bastila was concerned when she saw a variety of expressions run across her bond-mate's face. "Are you alright?"

The young man's eyes snapped open as he floated a little ways off, so at least their bodies wouldn't be touching, and grinned sheepishly. "Yeah, I just got a…cramp for a sec, but I'm fine now. Sorry for the wait." He shrugged, more than ready to change the subject. "Well, there's no use in delaying the inevitable; lets learn how to swim!"

She nodded, but was taken aback from his new enthusiasm for swimming. She wondered what had changed his mind, but secretly hoped it was his sheer trust in her.

"The first thing you must learn is leg control. Arms steer you in the right direction, but the legs propel the body."

"Huh. So, it's all about leg power?"

"Yes. A great example is what I am doing now. The reason that both of us are afloat is because of the way my legs are moving."

"I want to pick up my slack so, how do you do the floating thing?"

"Hmm…it's sorta like walking in slow motion at first."

Kaleb smiled. "Walking in slow motion? That's _definitely _something _I _could relate to in real life. Cause you're just not cool, until you're walking in slow mo."

She rolled her eyes from his sarcasm. "Well, excuse me for it being hard to explain."

"No, no. What you gave me there was great." A determined expression dawned on his face as he theatrically slow walked. "I'm…go…ing…to be…late!" He said in a sluggish voice.

She laughed as a crooked smirk spread on his lips. "I think I got it."

Bastila shook her head. "A little too well, I think."

"It can only be expected. I always was teacher's pet."

She raised an eyebrow. "Is that so? Well…" She released her arm from his body, leaving him to float on his own.

Kaleb faltered for a moment as the left side of his body began to sink, but started propelling his legs as she instructed. The Jedi was pleased that he learned so quickly. There was no doubt in her mind that he wouldn't get the hang of it and she wouldn't have let him go unless she was 100 percent sure.

"Now that you've mastered that, let's try simple strokes."

"What? Whoa, can we just calm down for a second? I'm still trying to get the whole floating so I won't die thing down."

Bastila smiled as she gracefully dipped her body into the water just enough so her feet and calves would surface. Kaleb watched in awe as her arms formed symmetric angles that glided her forward; her magnificently crafted legs meshing perfectly with the gentle ripples she made.

She swam a little ways off and sighed as she turned around to face him. "I'm a little rusty, but that can only be expected since I haven't done this in so long."

He snorted. "If you're rusty, then I'm broken."

She chuckled. "You can't be faulted; it's only your first time."

"And I was actually starting to become a little confident, but then you had to be a show off with your flashy show offy moves; you big show off."

"Aw, but I thought you were the '_teacher's pet_'?" She asked mockingly. "You should be able to show off yourself and follow me easily."

"Yeah…about that. I'm pretty darn comfortable were I am now."

"Oh, come on." Bastila goaded with a hint of a challenge that she knew he wouldn't be able to resist. "You can't be scared…unless you're a…_chicken_!" She exclaimed in a fake sneeze.

He laughed. "Yes! Please use my own tactics against me so you can force me to swim against my will; knowing good and well that I can't resist an attack on my dignity!"

The young man copied her movements as his lower body descended until his calves and feet surfaced. He made sure to move his legs so he wouldn't do a 360 and bent his arms into angles. Kaleb carefully paddled over to where she was, trying his best not to make any mistakes.

Bastila laughed as she watched him his precise movements. "Would you please relax? You're as stiff as a board."

He didn't even look up at her, still concentrating on his movements. "It's very…hard to…relax…when I'm…in a…life or…death…situation." He explained bit by bit, saying each word after one of his strokes.

"Why are you speaking like a broken droid?"

"I'm trying…to…swim here…ok? Not so…much with…the…focus on…how…I'm talking…and you're…not…helping at…all."

She chuckled. "Well…you're not…going…to reach…me if you…swim…as fast…as you…talk."

"I'll get…there…eventually."

Bastila flashed him a furtive smirk as she lay down and started a backstroke. "I'm getting…farther…away."

Kaleb glanced up briefly to see what she was doing. "I really…don't…like you."

"Boo…hoo. I'm not…supposed…to be…your…friend right…now. So…hurry up."

"No." He stated unperturbedly. "You'll reach…the other…end…sooner or…later and…then…you'll have…to stop. So…ha!"

_Hmm… _She thought to herself. _I'm obviously going to have to use more incentive to get him over here. _

"I'll make you a deal." The young Jedi told him normally as she stopped swimming. "If you can beat me to the other end of this pool before I can get there, I'll…"

"You'll?" He asked, his interest grabbed by her comment.

"I'll do one thing that that you want, no questions asked."

He immediately perked up after hearing this and stopped swimming also. "Anything I want at all? No matter how stupid or degrading?"

"Yes, but-"

"Here it comes."

"If you lose, you'll have to do one thing for me that I want. No questions asked, of course."

"I don't know. I really don't like the idea of me having to do anything that you want."

"That's only if you lose and besides, we both have the same risks." She looked away and grinned. "But…I can definitely understand your trepidation. I would be afraid to go against me too."

He scoffed. "Sweetie, I'm never afraid. I'm just…calculating my options."

"Sure you are, _sweetie_. Take your time."

His eyes narrowed. "I accept you terms to our race and anything else you can throw at me."

"Alright then, let's go. Since I'm a little ways ahead of you, I'll give you a head start."

Kaleb smirked smugly. "If you won't to lose that much sooner, than that's your choice."

"Oh no. This head start will give me time to decide what I'm going to make you do when you lose."

"But see, you're not gonna win; I am."

"I doubt it when you swim about as fast as a water-logged Rancor, but that's why I'm letting you go before me. I don't want this race to be too easy now."

He chuckled at her boasts. "I might've swum like that, but that was before so much was at stake. Now you're gonna see just how fast a learner I really am." The young man ended assertively as he readied himself to go.

She rolled her eyes. "I can't wait to see you try to say that when I beat you. Five…"

Kaleb took off with such agility and momentum, that even Bastila was surprised.

"Four…" _I'll admit, he's good and I wouldn't expect anything less, but if he wins…_ "Three…" _I'll never hear the end of it. _

He was less than three feet away from her when he saw her wink at him with a sly smile on her face and started to swim off.

"Zero!" The young woman exclaimed as she kept swimming.

He sped after her in a fury. "Hey! That's not…fair!"

She kept pushing back water behind her in waves. "I don't see…why not. I said I…would give you a…head start, but…never said how long…it was going to be."

Kaleb stretched his arms out as far as they would go and kicked his feet rapidly in an attempt to gain some distance on her. "That was cheating…and you know it!"

She gave a breathy chuckle as she quickened her strides. "If I were you…I'd focus more on the…race. You're losing…you know!"

His brow furrowed as he started to close in on her. "Hmph, not for long." The young man moved his legs even faster and reached out his arm to grab her ankle. "Gotcha!"

Bastila yelped in surprise as she was abruptly stopped from her accelerated pace while he sniggered.

"It seems that you're not the only one who can cheat, huh?"

"Let go of me right now, Kaleb!" She demanded forcefully as she tried to kick him.

He, to her extreme annoyance, just laughed as he held ankle still; making all attempts of hurting him futile.

"Awww! Is somebody getting _frwustrated_?" Kaleb asked humorously while she glared at him; but he was having too much fun to care about her anger.

"If memory serves, before we took our first steps on outside Manaan, I warned you that I would get you back for splashing me with water from that one fountain. Any of that ring a bell?"

"Kaleb, I'll-"

"That's what I thought." He told her calmly and nodded his head. "Hmm…you know what, Mr. Kaleb?"

"_Yes, Mr. Kaleb?_" The young man answered himself in a silly voice.

"There's just been something that I've been wondering about for a while now."

"_And what's that?_"

"I've always wondered if Miss. Shan here was ticklish."

"_Gosh, so have I. Maybe we should find out?_"

He chuckled. "Man, it's like we're the same person, you read my thoughts so well!"

Kaleb lifted her foot a little ways from his mouth as she tried to squirm free. "First, a test." He gently blew some air across the base of her foot and she shivered.

"_Mr. Kaleb, I think that is a clear and resounding yes on the tickling issue!_"

"Yes, but I think…further testing is needed."

He removed a dripping hand from the water and quickly moved his fingers up and down across her foot. The effect was immediate as Bastila couldn't help but laugh as he tickled her mercilessly.

"Kaleb!" She gasped loudly. "Please…stop!"

"Hmm…I don't make deals with cheaters. _But_…if you happened to apologize for being such a sore loser, _maybe _we'd have something to talk about."

"No…" She whimpered from the pain that she was starting to feel from laughing too hard, but still wouldn't give in. "I didn't…cheat!"

The young man just shrugged as he started tickling her big toe. "This little gizka went to market." He moved to her second toe. "This little gizka stayed home." He went to her third toe. "This little gizka had nerf stew and…" He moved on to the fourth toe. "This little gizka had none." Kaleb smirked as he saw Bastila dying from laughter. "I don't have to do the last one, you know. All you have to do is say the magic words and I'll let you go."

"…Never!" She managed to get out.

"_Ooookay_." He smiled as he wiggled her pink toe. "This little gizka cried "wee, wee, wee" All the way home." He then tickled all her toes as he used his two fingers to 'walk' back to the big toe.

The Jedi laughed uncontrollably as tears ran down the corner of her eyes. "Alright!" "She exclaimed, surrendering from his torture.

"Alright, what?"

"You win…I…cheated!" She admitted, desperate for him to stop.

He slowed his fingers down a bit. "And you're a, what now?"

"I'm a…sore loser!"

Kaleb snickered as he stopped and let go of her foot. "Now that wasn't that hard, was it?"

She couldn't answer him because she was still recovering her breaths to a normal pace once again.

He laughed at her predicament. "Well, it looks like you're a little occupied at the moment, so I'm just gonna win this race real quick."

The young man was about to swim off, but didn't get far before he felt a pair of soft hands touch his shoulders.

"Leaving so soon?" Bastila whispered huskily in his ear, which automatically made his body produce shivers down his spine from instinct. "The fun is just about to start."

Kaleb was about to ask what she meant by that comment, but was cut off when she slowly slid her hands down his arms and to his firm stomach. His eyes widened with shock at what Miss Jedi of the Year was doing, but that couldn't save him from instantly becoming aroused from her supple, wet body pressed against his. Before he could stammer out another word, she pulled his torso close to hers as she fell back into the water. She completed the motion while she took him underwater with him, creating the perfect dunk.

Coming up for air as soon as he broke free from her grasps, he swam away from the edge of the 'pool' and climbed out coughing.

"_You're…_You're gonna pay for that!" Kaleb exclaimed angrily as Bastila resurfaced and laughed.

"Do your worst, but unless I'm seeing things, you're out of the water so that means you forfeit the race over to me and I win by default."

"Whatever," He grumbled as he walked over to his pile of discarded clothes. "Like I wanted to win that stupid race anyway." He pulled his shirt over his head and it clung to his wet body. "I got you to admit that you cheated and that you're a sore loser; so whoo hoo that you get the race which, by the way, you really didn't win."

She scoffed as she laid her crossed arms on the side of the 'pool'. "Could you be any more competitive?"

He pulled up his drawstring pants. "I'm not competitive; I just always win. Losing is not an option for me."

"Look at you all, "Losing is not an option for me. Harrumph!" She mocked using a gruff voice. "You lost and that's the end of it. Also, don't think I've forgotten our little bet. You have to do anything I ask."

Kaleb gave her an agitated look, but it was quickly replaced by a smirk as an evil thought entered his head.

She raised an eyebrow as she witnessed this. "What are you about to do?"

He walked over to where her neat pile of clothes resided. "I was just thinking…what if something bad happened to your clothes?" He scooped them up. "I mean, if you couldn't get these, you'd have to walk around this embassy half-naked."

Bastila didn't even want to think on that situation. She almost jumped out of the water as she tried to get her clothes back, but stopped when she saw him dangling her clothes over the 'pool'.

He shook his head. "That's not how this game works. You come too close and your stuff takes a dive."

"This "_game_" of yours is immature on even your standards, Kaleb. Now stop acting like a child and give me back my clothes."

"Like dunking me in the water isn't childish. Besides," He looked her up and down, with a lascivious look on his face. "I'm enjoying the view and I don't want to end this anywhere near soon."

She was mad at his stupidity, but still flushed from knowing that she was so exposed to him. She frantically looked for anything to cover herself with, but only spotted his knapsack. She grabbed it, hoping that there were some clothes inside, and ran behind a column. It hid her from his eyes, but wasn't so public that anyone who passed them from the hallway could see her.

"Aw, come on!" He exclaimed after her, amused by her actions. "Where's the fun in that?"

She ignored him and began to rummage through his through his bag.

_Armor…medpacks…his lightsabers…come on, there has to be some form of - _

A small smile appeared on her face when she felt a cloth-like material and pulled it out. It was a gray hoodie that Kaleb had clearly forgotten about. Bastila quickly un-zipped it and slipped her arms through the long sleeves that fell slightly over her fingers. She zipped it back up and looked in the bag again to see if he had stashed an extra pair of pants also. The Jedi groaned as she saw only a short gray hat with a red strip through it and a couple of vibroswords.

"Come out, come out wherever you are!" Kaleb taunted as he ambled down to where she was hiding.

She surveyed herself to see if she was at least presentable. The hoodie was graciously long so it stopped at about at her mid thigh, which meant her undergarments were hidden, but most of her legs were seen.

She sighed. "Well, beggars can't be choosers and it covers most of me."

"Boo!" The young man exclaimed as he jumped out in front of the column. The smirk he wore grew when he saw what the young woman was in. "I'm sorta mad that you found something to wear, but the thing that you're wearing while being half-naked really makes up for that." He leered at her athletic frame in his loose gray hoodie. "You just don't know how _sexy_ you are right now."

Her trademark icy glare was aimed right at him. "I know exactly what I want you to do for me."

"Oooh sounds promising."

"Oh, I assure you it will be for me. Since you cannot follow directions at all, I think I'll have you do whatever I want for the rest of today."

"I gave my word, but hey, I had a great time. And that's all that matters."

"And now it's my turn. In fact, let's begin. I don't want you talking anymore."

The young man nodded as he whisked his thumb and pointer finger across his lips to symbolize that his mouth was closed.

Bastila let out a satisfied sigh. "It's really a shame that this only has to happen once. The silence from you not talking is just too good to be true."

He rolled his eyes, but she just smiled. "If you don't mind, and something tells me you won't, I want my clothes back."

He bowed, lifted the hand that held her clothes, and smirked as he gave them to her.

She scoffed. "Even your expressions and actions are insufferable."

Kaleb made his face void of emotion and held his hand out.

"What do you want?"

He pointed to the hoodie she had on.

"Oh, you want this, do you?"

He nodded.

"You know, I've grown quite fond of this jacket of yours. I think I'll keep it just in case there's a cold night. Any objections?"

He shrugged and shook his head.

"Good."

Kaleb walked over to his guitar, wrapped the strap around his neck once again, and left the submersible holding area.

As he passed rooms down the hallway, he noticed that they were all filled with their crew mates. Carth and Canderous in one, Mission and obviously her Wookie guardian, and last, there was Jolee and Juhani.

_Oh, they're cute. Taking all the two bed rooms and forcing her and me to sleep together… _He smirked. _I like the way those guys think._

All those rooms had separate beds, but he knew that the room he picked only had one. And since he had to do everything Bastila said, she would probably kick him out.

The young man sighed. _Mental note. Never race against Bastila in something you can hardly survive in yourself; especially when your dignity is at stake. _

Kaleb grinned naughtily as he flicked on the room's lights. _Gosh…the possibilities are endless for this room! _

The Jedi walked inside the room and immediately saw the solitary king-sized bed that Roland had told her about.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me. Out of all of the rooms in this place you have to pick this one?"

He pointed to himself, put his hands against his head to imitate sleeping, and made an invisible box around him.

"You thought you would be sleeping alone?"

He nodded.

"And what kind of selfish excuse is that? You take the biggest room because you wanted to sleep alone?"

Kaleb glanced up at the ceiling for a moment in thought, but quickly looked back at her and nodded again.

"Typical."

He pointed to her, imitated sleeping once again, and pointed to the door.

"Are you trying to say I don't have to sleep here?" She asked irritably.

An astonished expression appeared on his face as he put his pointer finger to his head and then took it off.

"Wow, I didn't know you could be so thoughtful." She told him dryly. "I think I'll be just as generous. Since there, regrettably, are no more rooms for _you _to move in to, _you'll_ just have to sleep on the floor. _Please _do not hesitate to tell me if you do not like my idea, but if you do, just be silent."

He smiled, knowing that he couldn't say anything back to her.

"Great!" She exclaimed happily as she removed a pillow from the bed, grabbed a blanket that was draped over the comforter, and dropped them on the floor. "Your bed, sir; and may I say it looks _very _comfortable. I'm jealous even."

Bastila then plopped on the claimed soft bed. "Oh yes, _so very_ jealous."

The young man shook his head and went into the bathroom to find a towel to dry his wet clothes with.

"Fetch me a towel also, would you?" She asked him smugly, when he came out.

He looked at her like she was crazy, but desisted as he took a deep breath to calm himself. He gave her a forced smile and a thumbs-up sign as he went back to grab another towel for her. The young man exited the bathroom, but stopped and pointed to her then the bathroom.

She chuckled as she sat up. "No, I don't need anything else…for now."

He scoffed and threw the towel at her, but she caught it with ease.

"Oh my, that was a forceful toss. Are you starting to get mad?"

Kaleb raised his eyebrows innocently as he pointed to himself.

"Yes you."

He shook his head and began to peel off his damp shirt off. It was completely soaked, so he tossed it in a corner.

The young woman was drying her golden-brown hair when a particular droplet of water on his chest caught her eye. She was rapt as it slithered down his tanned pecs and dipped along the gentle, yet defined ridges of his abs. Bastila was suddenly knocked out of her trance when he wiped his stomach off. She quickly looked away and resumed drying her hair. It was bad enough that she was developing certain…feelings for him despite her training or when her eyes had a mind of their own and watched him, but she was gradually losing control over herself every time she was even near him. It was scary because she didn't know why this was happening or what was triggering it and what she was experiencing, but even more terrifying was that in some way she was starting to accept it.

Kaleb, deciding that he was dry enough, picked up his newly acquired guitar and sat down in a chair. He smiled at the uncanny resemblance that it had to the first guitar he had received, except…

He got up and grabbed one of his cerulean sabers from his knapsack.

Bastila momentarily paused wiping off her legs and looked up at him. "What are you about to do with your lightsaber?"

He grinned from her curiosity, but pointed to his guitar, and started mimic writing with his saber.

"I don't understand. Why are you going to destroy your guitar by writing on it with your saber?"

He shook his head, knowing that he couldn't explain it to her like this. He pointed to himself and then flapped his hand like he was talking.

"You want to talk?" She nodded. "Go ahead, but say something ignorant and you'll regret it."

Kaleb laughed. "It'll kill me inside, but sure, I'll be a good boy. Anyway, I'm not gonna destroy it, but just write my name."

"But why would you want to damage it like that?"

"Oh, that's right. I didn't tell you about my history with the guitar. My mom got me one that looks just like the one I have now, but it was personalized for me by my name being on it." He chuckled. "It was cool, but it also made it harder for someone to steal it from me. Not that I'd let that happen."

"So you want to personalize your new guitar?"

"Yup; I've got to add some individuality to it or it will just be another instrument." He told her as he turned a dial on his saber to dull its intensity.

"That is different." She replied as she finished with her legs and placed the towel on a desk.

Kaleb activated his saber and it announced itself with a weaker hum. He turned the guitar over and balanced the head of it on the chair. As soon as he was sure that it was stable, he carved out a neat cursive 'Kaleb' on the body.

"There we go." He blew the wood residue away. "Now it's perfect."

He looked over at his companion when he heard her groan. Her eyes were closed in a quiet pain as she rubbed the base of her shoulders.

"Hey, are you ok?"

Bastila opened her eyes. "Oh, it's nothing; I'm just a little sore. That race took more out of me than I thought."

"Well, rubbing your shoulders like that isn't gonna help any because it will make it hurt more." He went to the bathroom and turned on the hot water with a little mixture of cold. "Since it's my fault that you had to get in the water and swim anyway, at least let me pay you back with a massage."

"Um…no, that's alright. I'll be fine after a good rest."

He grabbed a rag and soaked it into the warm water. "No you won't. You'll just be tense and uncomfortable in the morning and that's not gonna help you on the trip we have to take tomorrow."

"Well…maybe, but-"

"But nothing. You're getting a massage whether you like it or not." Kaleb wringed them just enough so they wouldn't be dripping. "And you being stubborn isn't gonna make you any more relaxed."

The Jedi was about to open her mouth in protest, but closed it. Her body did ache and it looked like he wasn't going to take no for an answer anyway.

"I…guess not. Thank you."

"Hey, just think of it as me showing my gratitude for you teaching me how to swim." He came out of the bathroom and paused. "Um…To tell you the truth, I was petrified when I was in the water, but you…being there really helped out. I just…well…I wanted to tell you that I really do trust you with my life. It wasn't just a 'tell you only when I think I'm about to die thing'…I…really meant it."

Bastila smiled at him warmly. "I know, Kaleb."

He let out a relieved sigh. "I'm glad then." He laughed from the semi-tense moment. "Whew, it felt good to get that off my chest, but enough with my confessions; one massage for Bastila, hold the mayo! Take off _your_ hoodie and lie belly down on the bed, please. I want you in the most comfortable position possible."

She nodded and complied with his demands as he sat beside her.

He placed the wet rags on her lower back, upper back, and the middle. "First, some heat to relieve pressure."

The young woman moaned softly as the warm cloths made contact with her skin.

"Feels good, right? But don't get too comfortable with just that 'cause it's about to get a lot better."

Kaleb eyed a bottle of lotion on a small drawer and used it to oil his hands. "Alright, hands nice and soft. Let's do this."

The young man gently clasped the start of her shoulders and began to move his fingers up and down rhythmically to a beat of his own.

"Force, Bastila, your muscles are about as uptight as you are. It makes no sense that you're so tense." He chuckled. "Heh, that rhymed."

"Mmm-hmm…" She replied distractedly, engrossed with how wonderful his massage felt.

Kaleb grinned as he used both hands to rub her left arm. "Well, I'm happy to see that you're enjoying yourself and since you're in such a relaxed mood; let's play a game."

"What…sort of game?" She asked lazily.

"A question game, were we both can ask each other a question on our turns. The only catch is that the answer has to be the truth."

"You already know a lot about me…probably more than others ever will."

"Yeah, but most of it has to do with the Jedi. I want to know something more about just you."

Bastila chuckled. "Something more me, huh?"

"I don't know; stuff like…" He trailed in though as he removed the rags from her back and prepared to massage it. "What's your middle name?"

"That's your big question? What's my middle name?" She couldn't help, but laugh.

"Whoa! I don't know; that's a little personal, don't you think?"

"See, why you gotta be mean like that? Here I am trying to be open and conversational and then you make fun of my questions. I wouldn't tease you on any of yours."

"I'm sorry, I'll be serious. My middle name is Oriane."

"Bastila Oriane Shan…very nice."

"So what's yours?"

Bitterness swelled in him rapidly. "Joseph."

"Your middle name is Joseph? That's so cute."

He scoffed. "I don't see how."

"You don't like it?"

"No, and anyway, it's supposed to be my turn for asking questions; not yours. Um…What your dad's name? I've only heard you and your mother call him father."

"I haven't told you his name? I guess it wasn't a real concern at the time, but you deserve to know. It was Saryn Lendon Shan; the best treasure hunter you ever would have met."

"Sounds cool, and your mom said that you loved to go with him." He grinned. "You must have had the best childhood before you went to the Jedi. Discovering new places, finding rare treasures, and pretty much going all Bastila the Explorer."

She sighed as she reminisced. "It was exhilarating. Going around the galaxy, meeting all kinds of people who taught me all kinds of things, and never staying in one place for too long."

"I never would have thought of you as a nomad."

"Yes, I've always loved to travel and see the next new and exciting place." Bastila chuckled. "I remember, at first, that I didn't like Dantooine because it was such a boring, peaceful place, but as I grew, I learned to appreciate its quiet beauty."

"It was nice, but if I stayed there too long, I would have gone crazy; it was just way too stable for my tastes. Anyway, I guess it's your turn again."

"I still want to know why you don't like your middle name."

Kaleb sighed resignedly. "On Kashyyyk, I told you about my…dad and how my mom loved the useless womanizer, but…I never told you his name. Luckily, my mom didn't name me after the Hutt spawn, but I couldn't get out of it when she made my middle name Joseph."

"So that's why you dislike it. It was your father's name."

"That _man_ will never be my father because he never _earned_ the title." He growled; his eyes narrowed.

"I apologize…I didn't mean to pry in something so personal to you."

Kaleb shook his head. "No, it's not your fault. You told me your dad's name so I only owed you the same." He smirked. "But for now, let's move on to more interesting topics. What was your favorite moment on this mission with me?"

"Hmm…You mean besides now? Probably when you got me my dragon pearl necklace when I was so heartbroken by my father's death. But it wasn't because of the item itself, mind you, but that you were thoughtful enough to have this made in the remembrance of him."

He started to softly kneed her lower back. "Of course I would care. I told you I couldn't stand you being so depressed."

"That's sweet, but you still didn't have to do it."

"Yes, I did-end of discussion. Now, what's your question?"

"The same thing you asked me."

"So you want to know my favorite moment with you? Wow, that's pretty hard; every time I'm with you is my favorite moment."

She turned her head towards him slightly and rolled her eyes. "Even when we fight?"

"Especially when we fight. I sorta take it as a compliment because it's much easier to get mad at someone you trust."

"Why is that?"

"You always know that they'll be there for you no matter what." He grinned. "Also, its fun trying to figure you out, remember?"

"Well then, I'm glad that you find me so interesting."

"You'd have to be dead not to."

The Jedi glanced away from him shyly and smiled. "Next question, please."

"Let's see…what do you like most about me?"

"Well, aren't we cocky tonight?"

The young man laughed. "Hey, I said I wanted to know more about you and that includes all your views on me."

She scoffed. "I suppose it would be your 'jump in head first' approach to life. You never hold anything back, make all your views heard, try to have as much fun as you can possibly have at any given time, and never seem afraid of a new challenge. I like it that you live in the most uncomplicated way when this galaxy is such a complicated place."

Kaleb smiled as he finished with her back and started to massage her neck. "Do you want to know what I like most about you?"

Her eyes drooped from the comfortable motions of his hands. "I'm…afraid of the answer, but sure…" She yawned. "Why not?"

"Even though there are _so_ many things to like, the best would have to be your eyes."

"My…eyes?"

"Yeah…there's just see so much depth in them; so much passion. And when I look at them, no matter what emotion they're portraying, the feelings I get…it's tremendous. My ideas are fast…" He paused, trying to capture the expression he was looking for. "Like shooting stars that you marvel at until brighter and more spectacular ones appear. And then, all nervousness or timidity disappears…the right words or gestures just are suddenly available to me." He chuckled. "Uninteresting things, like this mission for one, become extremely interesting. Something in your eyes makes me go crazy inside and sensuality rapidly turns pervasive and overwhelming; the desire to flirt and to want to be seduced back is irresistible. It's as if my very marrow has been infused with unbelievable powers of ease and euphoria…I can do anything, but…" The young man sighed. "Somewhere...this changes."

Bastila experiencing amazement and confusion at the same time. _That was absolutely beautiful, but... _"Why does it change?"

"It changes because…you and I can't…" Kaleb stopped rubbing her neck and collected the discarded rags. "Nothing." He stated solemnly as he tossed the pieces of cloth on the floor. "We can't be anything more than that…nothing."

"Kaleb…you know that I wish things could be otherwise…"

"We should just get some rest." He told her dismissively as he walked over to the light switch near the door and flicked it off. "It's been a long day for the two of us and I want to end it on a good note."

The Jedi eventually nodded, knowing that the path they were going down would only lead to hurt and heartache.

"Good night." She got up and slipped under the sheets on the bed.

"Right…" He replied distantly as he lay across from her on the floor, wrapped the blanket around himself, and closed his eyes. "Night."

THE END (whew, finally! You done good guys, you done good.)

This was definitely a long one, but I enjoyed writing it so I guess it's all good. Hopefully, you'll enjoy reading it just as much, but on to more important things.

You know, guys and gals, if I can be absolutely truthful with ya'll; I'm sorta ready to move on. I grow weary of the back and forth romance thing fling blah blah going on between Bastila and Kaleb. So I have made the oh so…hmmm, how can I put this lightly? _Easy _decision of taking this story up a notch. You know, Bam! And because of this, the events in the next chapter are going to be…let me say…kinda…spicy. Now you're asking, "What exactly do you mean by that Leogrl19?" WELL, (sighs) you forced it out of me. The next installment will be in the Mature category and pretty much the whole rest of the story for that matter. I've decided that things should go out with a bang, if you get my drift, (I think somebody will if they remember a reply to a review I gave them) since Bas is gonna be kidnapped. (Telling you right now so none of ya'll get the wrong ideas. She is not,never, ever going to to be raped in this story. Besides the fact that it's the one of the worst things in the world that you can do to a person I just couldn't do it to her.) So, yeah, just giving you a warning about that and pissing you off with making you wait for the goodness. But anyway, until then, make your mark in history by reviewing the last teen one!


	12. Through Passion, I Gain Strength

(Deeply Inhales) Ahhh! I've arrived. The air is so much dirtier and fouler in the mature section. I _LOVE_ IT! (Sniffs while wiping eyes) It's so…_so_…_so beautiful!_ (And the award goes to Leogrl19 for her sappy performance about the benefits of moving over to the mature section!)

You know what, people; I have waited such a long time to get to this chapter! And I'm just going crazy because it's finally here! I remember when I was writing the part where they were on Kashyyyk and I kept saying: "Damn, I can't wait to get to the part where they kiss!" And it was even worse on Tantooine because they were getting closer and yet they couldn't get too close. But now, on sex M- (oops, my bad! Forgot the y on that sexy! Totally my fault! Must be a little too happy about this chapter!) Sexy Manaan, we finally get to do what I and probably everybody who has played the game wanted to see. And I'll tell you one thing right now; there will be no blackouts of scenes. (Well, except for one, but you'll understand why when you read it.) Everything is gonna be fully detailed so it's like your freakin' there. I'm talkin' about selling tickets, though!

(I'm sorry, excuse me, there's just something that I need to get something out. "Shut up and kiss me you babbling fool!" _What the hell_ were they thinking? Can I break it down on just how much I hate every single thing about that sentence? Thank you. (1) Why are you telling me to shut up? I'm telling you that I love you and you want me to shut up? Well, _beep_ you too, mother_beep_! (2) And. I hate that and, the dirty whore. It's just there for no reason in the world, but to join those two thoughts together. It's the thing that makes that whole sentence possible in the first place! Therefore, I hate it-next! (3) Kiss you? Ok…that's what I was going for in the first place. I don't understand why it has to be reiterated. I mean, does it make you feel better to say it first? Like, you're allowing me to kiss you? I don't have do a gat damn thing! I could go right now and freakin' win the Manaan swoop champion cup. Like I don't got anything better to do than kiss you. (4) You! I mean what the f- …Hmm…actually, no. I don't have a problem with that one. Carry on! (5) Of all the words in the dictionary that mean rambling or running on at the mouth they had to use that one? I mean really, babbling? Am I a brook or a baby? Seriously what kind of word is babble in the first place? I dare every single person who reads this to use that word in a sentence during everyday life and not laugh. Go ahead; leave it in the review that you give me. I'll go first: "I'm _so_ sorry, I was just on the phone _babbling_. I just _babbled _all over the place. I _babbled_ on and on and on. _Babbling all through the night!_" (6) And there you go with the insulting again! Why do I have to be a fool? But you know what, I'm really starting to think I'm a fool because I'm about to kiss someone (well, at least we think they kissed. Won't ever really know because that stupid fadeout! But if you want to take Bastila's word for it, be my guest.) who used that stupid line on me!

Tell me why it's been almost three years since this game has come out and I still have issues with that line! It's horrible! A freakin' embarrassment to the rest of the game! I know if they just sat down and talked it out, they could have come out with something much better or at least presentable. But, whatever, I got it out and I'm good now.

So, heat up the popcorn, try not to get too excited if you're in a public place, (I'm talking to you boys! But girls have at it! Whoo!) Get comfortable, get out some baby makin' music or just listen to the songs I've provided for you, and do the damn thing like the damn thing needs to be done! This one's gonna start out with a little soft porn action because, as I've heard, you've got to warm up the oven up before you stick in the turkey. I'm talking pre-heat at 350 degrees even!

Oh, I almost forgot! These are those songs that are must hears to set the mood for some events. They're absolute favorites of mine and I personally think the words in them perfectly describe the certain situation I put them in. Also, I primarily listen to R&B, so pretty much all of the songs are going be in that genre. If you just can't stand that, hey, I'm not holding a gun to your head (it's more of a knife), but I only ask that you give them a chance.

Kaleb's Songs:

(I'm gonna have different songs for the two of them, but I'm doing his first.)

Right at the beginning of the fic, the song Creep, Creep by Luther Vandross (Great song for what Kaleb is going through and how he feels about it. Words will go with the dream because I used the song as inspiration for it.)

No real specific events, just a great song for him, listen to at anytime- I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch) by the Four Tops. (This is truly a Kaleb song. Everything it says shows exactly what he's feeling and just how much he feels toward Bastila)

When Kaleb finally confronts Bas on their relationship-Show and Tell by Al Wilson (what he's saying, but in song form! Gotta love it!) And when she's all rejecting him and blah blah (My favorite song of all time!)-Anyone Who Had a Heart by Luther Vandross (If you read my profile, you know that I _freakin' adore_ his songs, so if you listen to none of the others, _please_ listen to this one. It's just so beautiful on so many levels and the saxophone in it…oh gosh. It brings tears to the eyes. You can just feel the pain that he's going through. Perfect for K at the place he's in because it's full on truth and shows you that love isn't always kind.)

Still when they're alone together-Through the Fire by Chaka Khan (Shows the extent that he is ready to go to for her to love him. Yay!)

(Two songs for the love scene. It's pretty long, so you should be able to listen to all of them! I heard that long! Please get out the frustration!)

I'm pretty sure you'll find a place to put this song in- Don't Say Goodnight by The Isley Brothers (I actually suggest hearing this one first.), Lady of My Life by Michael Jackson (I think the title is pretty darn descriptive so have at it! Whoo whoo! Ow Ow! Get down with your bad selves! Literally even! Lol All of them pretty much do it for me on Kaleb's POV)

Bastila's songs

(Unfortunately, Bas can't have as many songs because she's still not all emotional until the end. Well, we'll get there…sooner than later.)

Can span from when she is in the underwater station thinking to when they're in their room- Body and Soul by Anita Baker (Girl version of what she's feeling and kinda a confirmation also. Like if I do this, I have to be absolutely sure.)

Another whenever you wanna hear it kind of song-Falling by Amerie (Kaleb had his song, well, this is a truly Bas song! Listen and enjoy!)

When the two of them are alone you know with the romance and crap- Ain't Nobody (Love Me Better) by Chaka Khan (This song is so sexy! It's like a freakin' walkthrough for what Bas is thinking and their actions…it's kinda scary for how closely it shows what they're doing. Play this song right before they're about to kiss and you'll see what I mean. It's crazy.)

_Gat Damn_! Could this intro be any longer! I'm sorry ya'll, here's the story. Finally though! It's definitely a long one so you might want to be prepared! Don't any of ya'll die on me!

Chapter 12 

Kaleb was awakened as the sound of crashing waves reached his ears. He immediately saw a vast sparkling ocean in front of him and looked down to see trillions of soft grains of sand. But even though his surroundings were magnificent in every way, what he saw when he turned around was what truly astonished him. The sight of Bastila next to him sleeping in a fold out beach chair dumbfounded all of his senses as all he could do was stare.

She was breathtaking as the wind played with the long silky curls in her hair and the sun kissed her skin so that it gave off a radiant glow. The top part of her silk two-piece outfit was turquoise with a purple brim that tied around the back of her neck. The bottom was a light billowy wraparound of the same colors as the top, but with a split going down the right side of her sensual legs.

Kaleb closed his mouth and gulped so he wouldn't start drooling, but his eyes were compelled to meet with her face again. This time though, he noticed she was smiling as her eyes slowly flickered open.

"You make that face too long and it's going to get stuck like that."

He shook his head to bring himself back into reality and grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, but the view was just way too good to pass up." The young man lifted his back up off the sand. "Did you have a nice nap?"

Bastila rose from her chair and stretched out her arms. "It was very relaxing and…" She trailed as she walked over to him and sat on his lap. "Guess who I dreamt about?"

He wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her closer. "Uh…Zalbaar?"

She laughed. "Oh yes, Kaleb, I had a dream about that hairball."

"Damn, I knew I should have kept you away from him. The ladies always go for those strong silent types."

She seductively traced a finger on his bare chest in little circles. "I've always been more compelled by the…funny and handsome types."

Kaleb lowered his head so his lips were right next to her. "_Well, then lucky me._" He whispered huskily and started to gently nibble the lobe of her ear.

The young woman moaned as she tilted her head closer to give him better access. "I wouldn't exactly say that I got the short end of the…" She slid her hand down the defined ridges of his abs and into his trunks. "_Stick_." She finished in a sultry tone as she stroked his manhood to add emphasis.

He almost lost his mind as he exhaled raggedly from the stimulation she was giving him and began to hungrily kiss the base of her shoulder and traveled back up to the sensitive part behind her ear. Bastila bit her lip hard as a delicious shiver overcame her body, but he made sure to keep his hands busy as lifted her silk top and began caressing her breasts. Her fingers dug into his chest as she groaned in delight, but Kaleb, excited by her lustful sounds, used his free hand to twist her body around and she responded by locking her long legs around his lower chest. He glided one of his hands down her hips and the other ran down her lean stomach.

Her eyes drooped with desire as the corner of her lips curled up into a smile.

"Down." She commanded as she placed her pointer finger against his forehead and pushed him backwards into the sand. He didn't stay on the sand for long though as he lifted his neck so he could reach up to kiss those full rose lips-

(SUDDEN BLACKOUT! LOL! I'm so evil!) -------------------------------------

Kaleb almost jumped out of his 'bed' when he felt something fall on his face. He looked around the perimeter of the room urgently, but sighed in relief as he saw his assailant. "All that excitement over a stupid pillow." He glanced at an alarm clock on the dresser in front of him and saw that it was six in the morning.

The young man's ears caught a soft whimper and he looked up to see Bastila tossing around in her bed.

_She must have pushed one of those pillows off the edge of the bed and gravity did the rest. _

He rubbed his head; suddenly remembering what he was abruptly woken out off and peeked under his covers to face what he knew would be inevitable.

_Dammit, like me not being able to control my body anymore isn't bad enough, but now I'm starting to have dreams about her too?_

Kaleb glanced up at her again and saw that she was tightly clutching the pillow with her eyebrows knitted together tightly.

"_I can't…fail the Council-the galaxy…" _He heard her murmur. _"Malak has to be…I have to succeed." _

No matter how hard he tried to deny it, how he wished that he would be the one she turned to when she was scared of something or that he could just hold her tightly and gently kiss all her fears away.

Bastila always put up such a determined and one-tracked façade whenever she talked about the mission, but he knew that she had to be as terrified as the rest of them were or even more so. It wasn't easy to admit, but the crew probably wouldn't stand a chance against the dark lord and in the end and it would probably be just the two of them. That council said that they had to draw strength from each other, but how could that happen if they couldn't even get closer?

"_How can that happen if she doesn't even want to share her burdens with me?_" He whispered bitterly.

Kaleb, before thinking of the consequences, lightly rubbed the back of his hand against her cheek and was relieved when he saw her features relax.

"_Kaleb_." She mumbled softly; to his immense surprise. "_I'm so…I'm so sorry._"

Her brows furrowed again as a distress washed over her face and she moved away from his touch. "_No other choice…"_

_What? _The young man was baffled from her jumbled words. _She's sorry and there's no other choice?_ He shook his head. _Was she talking about them not being able to be together in the way he wanted? _

Kaleb groaned in frustration as he threw the blanket off his body. Thinking about a relationship definitely wasn't helping matters so he got up, headed into the bathroom, locked the door, and turned the knob on the bathtub on the lowest possible temperature it would go to.

The young man stripped down and scoffed as he looked at himself. "Give it a rest already. You can't just spring up every time I'm thinking about or near her, alright?"

His erection ignored his words and seemed to taunt him as it stayed up. _Well tough shit. You give me the material, buddy, I just react to it. Besides, you know what you have to do to make me go away._

"_No_, not gonna happen." He told it doggedly. "I'm stronger than you and I'll find a way to get you down whether you like it or not."

It scoffed. _Good luck, lover boy._

His eyes narrowed as he stepped into the freezing stream of water. "It's on!"

He turned his body towards the spray and automatically started to shiver as the icy droplets fell on his excited penis. "If I never have to go into absolute zero water again, it will be too freakin' soon!"

It laughed at his pathetic attempt. _You know cold water would usually work, but I was too preoccupied with how good it felt when she fondled the shit out of me on that beach. _

"_Aaah_! Stop it you _sick bastard_!" Kaleb tried to focus on how cold he was, but his mind kept wandering back to the dream. "_Damn_, _damn_, _damn_!" He exclaimed as he hopped out of the tub; letting the water run still to drown out his words so the jedi wouldn't hear them.

The young man thought frantically for anything that wouldn't have to remotely do with the woman in the room next to him. "Uhhh…balloons! Balloons are nice and uh…pretty!"

_Oh yeah. _His erection told him. _Almost as pretty as Bastila was in that skimpy two piece outfit. That flimsy silk hugging every single curve of her body… _

He gripped the sink tightly and stared into the mirror. "I can't let him win! I have more control than this!"

_Come on…you know you wanna. Just a couple of good tugs and you're done. _

"No, if I do that than it means that I think of her as more than a friend and that can't happen!"

_Well, I think the dream that you had makes it pretty clear that you want her as more than that, but if you want to go all self-righteous on me, just think of you two as…friends with benefits. Everybody wins. _

He sighed as his resolve plummeted. "There's no way that I can keep this up and it's becoming increasingly obvious that I can't just be friends with her. But, dammit it all, why can't I? What is this strange tightness I feel in my chest every time I say her name? _And why in the hell can't I stop thinking about her, no matter how hard I try?_" Kaleb exclaimed as he banged a fist against the wall.

He quickly retracted it when he remembered that Bastila was asleep, but became angry again for caring in the first place.

"This is all her and that stupid bond's fault! The reason that I'm in her now, why she's always on my mind, why my heart feels like it's gonna explode when I'm close to her-" He suddenly paused as he replayed what he said over in his head. "My…heart…the more I try to hide my feelings for her, the more it gets in the way. It was yearning for something that it might never receive back, but there was no way out of it."

The young man didn't have time to dwell on it when he suddenly felt a distinct change in their bond.

"_Shoot_, she's starting to wake up!"

Kaleb took a deep breath as he was about to exit the door. The door slowly creaked open, but he automatically slammed it again.

"I can't believe that I was really about to walk out there butt naked; especially with my predicament." He looked down and saw that he was still at full attention. "Why won't you leave me alone, you son of a _shutta_?"

_I'm not going anywhere, buddy, and it looks like you're gonna have company if you don't take care of me soon. Actually, on second thought…let her come in! _

"You're supposed to be on my side!"

_If I wasn't on your side, do you think I'd be encouraging you to do this? Just get it out of your system, man. A quickie will do you good._

He sighed when he realized that it was right and would rather ride his swoop into the ocean than let her see him like this.

Kaleb surrendered as he stepped back into the tub and wrapped his hand across the base of his hard-on. He swore as an almost painful spasm shot throughout his system when he added pressure to his fingertips and gradually began to rub his hand up and down.

"_Ohhh…shit…_" He moaned haltingly as the colossal wave of ecstasy kept building up from his actions. _  
_His breathing quickly turned into short erratic bursts as he tried his best not to think of the one who caused his desire, but was failing at it miserably. Her image kept appearing in his head and there was no way he could hold back the surge of emotions that gushed out.

Kaleb inhaled sharply as desire took control and he started to move his hand faster. All the yearning, the longing, the want, the instinctual need, craving, ardor, temptation, the distress, agony, woe, and craze came out all at once.

"_F-Fuck!_" He stammered out harshly as all his senses were overtaken by pleasure and the head of his penis excreted its white milky liquid.

The young man could hardly breathe as he watched the rest of his semen go down the drain. After several recovering breaths, he let the spray of water clean him off and, after he finished, turned the knob to stop the water. No matter how good his actions felt, he couldn't help feeling ashamed as he left the bathtub and fetched a towel to dry himself off with.

Kaleb had masturbated before on this mission when he was bored or just plain horny, but this was definitely the first time that he had cum so hard. He knew that it was probably because he never felt as strongly about anyone as he did towards Bastila, but…he still hated the fact that it happened in the first place. He didn't want to just sleep with her…well…at least not without any feelings involved. She had his respect and for him to fall prey to something so…impulsive when he wanted it to be so much more than that…it made him sick.

He placed his feet into his khaki drawstring pants and pulled them up, picked up the rest of his clothes, laid the towel on its rack, and opened the door.

As soon as he left the bathroom, he saw Bastila yawning, her eyelids drooping.

_Oh, crap, she looks like something woke her up. _He thought nervously._ She couldn't have heard me, right? The water was pretty loud._

"Uh…h-hi."

She opened her eyes all the way and gave him a sleepy smile. "Good morning, Kaleb."

A sudden wave of uneasiness swept over him when he saw her. "Yeah, that morning just filled with…goodness."

_Filled with goodness? What the hell? _

She laughed. "Yes, well, that is another way to put it. Anyway, I have to thank you for what you've done."

"What…I've done?"

"The massage that you gave me last night really did do me good; I haven't felt so reenergized since our days on Dantooine. I meant to have thanked you earlier, but you were preoccupied in the bathroom."

He paled drastically. "I-I was just taking a shower!"

Bastila looked at him strangely. "O…kay, um…I'm happy for you?"

Kaleb pulled his red mesh shirt over his head, grabbed his hat out of his knapsack, and picked up his ebony guitar; deciding that he should get out of this room fast and try to recollect his usual composure. "Well, nice talking to you-bye."

"Wait, is something wrong? You seem on edge about something."

"Um…no; I'm good. I just want to go outside and play my guitar before we go down to that underwater station. It'll relax my nerves."

"You're still scared to go down there?"

"It's not that I'm afraid, but I guess…I'll just never like the water. Anyway," He strapped the instrument across his shoulder. "I won't be gone for too long, but you should still have plenty of time to get cleaned up and then we can go."

The Jedi nodded and headed to the bathroom as he left the room so he could get some well needed air.

------------------------------

Kaleb sat on a bench near the ocean, with his guitar resting on his thigh, and absently named the open notes of the strings and counted how many times he strummed them.

"ADGB four times, DGBE two times, than ADGB two times, lowEADB, DGBE, and then ADGB two times."

His attention slowly crept back as he played the notes again and liked the sound that he was getting from them.

"But, there's something missing…it needs more umph. Let's add…GBEB, EBGB, BEBG, BGBE, EEGB, GGEB, EEBG, and GGBE." He smiled in approval from the way each of the new notes sounded. "Hmm…the first four sets can all be played four times, and the rest of them once."

Kaleb slowly played the whole song and was glad that all of the notes went together without a hitch.

"Well done, maestro. If you have any more hidden talents, I'm gonna have to start exploiting them to make us some extra creds."

"I don't know about the whole maestro bit; that was just a little ditty I put together."

"It was good, but really depressing. Was it reflecting what you're feeling now?"

The young man laid the guitar down next to him. "Yeah…at least a part of what I'm feeling. This mission hasn't been easy on any of us."

The pilot nodded as he sat down next to him. "True, true."

"Speaking of truths, I hope you and the rest of the crew don't think that you're slick for putting Bastila and me in the same room."

Carth grinned. "Oh, come on. You can't tell me that you weren't happy with our decision?"

"You know, I was at first, but now it's just making things…complicated."

"Don't tell me there's trouble in paradise?"

He sighed. "What I'm about to tell you can only pass between us, alright?"

The pilot sobered up when he caught the serious tone in his voice. "Yeah…this is strictly between you and me. Now, what's up?"

"It's Bastila…the woman is driving me mad."

"The two of you arguing again?"

"No, we're getting along great-but that's the point. I'd take disagreeing with her any day than the agony that I'm going through now."

The older man immediately understood. "Does this have to do with you liking her?"

Kaleb ran his left hand over his now semi-medium length hair. "Is it that obvious?"

"Well, I don't know if it is to the others, but it's been clear to me that you've liked her for a while now."

"Either way, when I look at her now; she isn't just some challenge or some random crush anymore. She's something more than that; something more urgent. I can't stop thinking of her; it feels like I might be having a damn heart attack when she's close to me, and when she smiles my way…" He drew his fingers to the palm of his hand to show the passion of what he felt. "I can't explain…there's just no better feeling in the galaxy." His hand dropped as the sinking feeling returned once again. "It's getting so bad that I'm even starting to have dreams of her; like those stupid visions weren't bad enough!"

"Really?" He asked, but his face dropped when he saw the desolate look on Kaleb's face. "Oh…_oh_! You mean those kinds of dreams. She didn't…see anything, did she?"

"No, she was still sleeping, but what if it keeps happening, Carth?" The young man looked at him desperately. "I've tried…_so_ _hard_ not to like her! I've avoided her, made our conversations as short as possible, stopped saying things that was even a little bit suggestive, and even tried to be strictly business; so tell me why none of it works? Why can't I just shrug this whole thing off and move on with my life?"

The older man shook his head because he had once been in the same situation as his friend. "I think that you know the answer to that question, but…you think if you keep denying it; it won't become true."

Kaleb covered his face with his hands when he realized what he was implying. "You're…right. I can't move on because my heart won't let me. It doesn't listen to my pathetic excuses and does as it wills…I tried to take control of the love, but it ended up taking control of me." The young man suddenly looked back up at him with anger and pain in his eyes. "But what good can love bring if it isn't welcome by the person who called it out in the first place? How can you make someone believe that the things they've learned from childhood are any falser than the things that you're about to tell them? How?" He grabbed the pilot's shirt by the collar; demanding that his questions be answered. "How can somebody who utterly despises this…_shitty_ kind of one sided love that his mother had, still have been effectual enough to make the exact same mistakes?"

"Kaleb-"

"Because of this!" He spat as he pounded the right side of his chest. "This damn organ that should only be pumping blood through my body had to meddle in something that it had no fuckin' business being in!"

Carth threw his hands off him aggressively and pushed him back. "So what? Do you want me to throw you a pity party because you don't know how to handle your feelings?" His eyes narrowed. "You're not the only one who's been in love with someone that is incapable of loving you back, Kaleb! Everybody's not just gonna stop whatever they're doing to try and help you out when you're not even man enough to solve your own damn problems!"

Kaleb's face twisted in rage and he raised his fist from what he was saying and from all the other emotions that were swelling up within him, but lowered it back down again and kicked the leg of the metallic bench when he realized that Carth was right.

"_Shit_!" He yelled; half from frustration, the other from the pain he received from kicking it in the first place.

"The two of you, with your thinking that you can solve each and every thing by making a lot of noise; whoever's voice is the loudest wins." An aged voice suddenly interjected and both men turned around to see Jolee shaking his head as he walked towards them. "You know what the problem is with you youth nowadays? _You're_ _young_!"

Carth scoffed in disgust and just turned around to head back to the Republic Embassy.

The old man tsked as he stood in front of the young man. "Well, you obviously said something to piss him off."

"Not now." He told him tersely as he walked over to the railings.

"He's right, you know." The old man continued, not paying any mind to what he said. "You're certainly not the only one who's ever had trouble with love."

"Oh, so now you're gonna lecture me too?"

"Lecture? I was just stating facts, kid, not trying to give you some puffed up sermon."

"Facts?" The young man turned around and glared at him. "What could you know about love, when you're just some old hermit?"

"I know that I know a great deal more than you probably ever will with that foul attitude." He replied, his tone slightly darker. "And I wasn't always the wrinkled coot you see here, kid. I've had my own adventures that would put this little scavenger hunt of a mission you got going on here, to shame."

"And since when have you had _adventures_?"

"Bah. It's all ancient history, probably before you were even born. History bores kids; proven fact."

"Well, old people like to talk about it anyway; proven fact."

"Oh fine, fine, have it your way. Yes, I was an adventurer. Happy now?"

"To the point of bursting from overexcitement." Kaleb answered flatly.

He ignored his comment. "I wasn't even done with my Jedi training back then. I had a full head of hair and an eagerness to see absolutely everything. Sound familiar?"

"Hmm…nothing's coming to mind at the moment…"

"I'll give you a hint. His name starts with a K and ends with a B."

The young man shook his head. "Can I buy a vowel?"

"Anyway, back to the story. The Council was never happy with willful, brash Jolee Bindo, you see. Even less so when I began my smuggling career."

"_You _were a _smuggler_?"

"Don't look at me like that, dammit! I'm more than capable so you can just wipe that smirk off your face."

"Sir, yes sir, Mr. Smuggler, sir!"

"At the time the Ukatis system was interdicted by its own King. He preferred to keep his people starving and poor, all the better to oppress them. So, I found myself a ship and a partner and we began taking a couple of things like food and medical supplies from people that were…let's say well off enough and gave them to people who needed them more."

"Stealing from the rich and giving to the poor, huh? Bet the council wasn't too happy about that."

"Of course not, but I can't ever say I've seen them do happy. Besides, 'stealing' is such a harsh word. I consider it a tax on the greedy."

"That's a pretty nice way to put it." Kaleb gave him a sideways glance. "Did you get caught?"

"Only once. A lone Ukatish frigate shot us down and forced a crash landing. I thought the Force had abandoned me, as I remember."

"So what happened next?"

"Well, it just so happens that getting shot down was the day was very fortunate. That day was the day I met…Nayama."

"Who's that chick?"

His face dropped and his glanced at the sea. "That chick"...was my wife."  
"What?" The young man asked skeptically. "_You've_ actually been married?"

"You know another way of getting a wife?" He threw back snappily.

"It's just…wow; I never would have thought. What happened to her?"

The old man sighed heavily, as if a great burden that he hadn't let out for years was coming out once again. "It was during the Great Sith War, it was those who believed the teachings of Exar Kun and those who remained with the Order. Imagine, friends and family who had, months prior been allies, being pitted against each other and ordered to kill." He paused. "Nothing could prepare me for the day when Nayama came to me and told me that she had sworn allegiance to Exar. I…thought she must be delusional until she tried covert me to the Sith Lord's teachings also."

"What did you tell her?"

"I told her that I couldn't turn my back on the Order and begged that she re-think her actions. She kept trying to turn me to her ideals, but when she finally figured out that I wouldn't join her; she took out her lightsaber and tried to strike me down."  
Kaleb's eyes widened. "Your wife tried to kill you?"

"Yes. She told me that I was weak for not being able to see the advantages of what joining Exar Kun would bring me and she would destroy me here and now. It was bad enough that I couldn't help her, but to be turned down by someone who you loved more than life itself...it's devastating."

"You…didn't kill her…did you?"

"I was the one who taught her every thing she knew, so there was no way that she could best me. I unarmed her and Nayama awaited her death, but…I just couldn't do it. I loved her too much to kill her. Once she noticed this, she grabbed her saber and fled."

"Well…at least you did the right thing by not killing her."

Jolee scoffed. "Was what I did the right thing? She later went on to kill many Jedi of whom a lot, I had known personally. I had still served for the Jedi, during the war, attempting to find her, but found out later that…that she had been slain during battle."

"I'm sorry, Jolee."

"You've got nothing to be sorry about and you definitely couldn't have prevented it. After the war had ended, I went back to the Council for my judgment. Even though I had violated the Jedi Code by teaching Nayama the ways of the Force and by marrying her, they just said that "I had learned wisdom the hard way. They then rewarded me with a promotion to Jedi Knight."

"And you thought that you weren't worthy of it, didn't you?"

"No, I knew that I wasn't worthy or it. I had broken several of their tenets and they only wanted to give me a pat on the head and say I had grew from the experience? At that exact moment, I knew that the Order had left me that day."

"The jedi left you, so you left them."

"I just knew that there was no way I could work with them anymore so I rejected their promotion and left."

"So, that's how you ended up on Kashyyyk?"

The old man chuckled. "Actually, the whole thing was a mistake. I didn't want to land on Kashyyyk at all, but apparently, the ship had other plans when it started to malfunction. I crashed landed on the planet and decided to stay."

Kaleb sighed. "Well, I'm officially an asshole. I've grumbled and whined about my petty problems with Bastila without even putting thought into what other people have gone through."

"Pretty much, but don't be too hard on yourself about it; you're a first timer."

He shook his head. "Well, that's one way to put it."

"I think, instead of taking your frustration out on others, you should just talk to her."

"Oh, what, is it so clear to you too?"

"Of course, but you should really blame the Force around you two."

"Why not? The stupid force is why I'm on this mission in the first place, so I have no problem blaming it."

"I meant you and Bastila's personal Force. When the two of you are apart, the Force that swirls around you is erratic like a hurricane or whirlwind. But when you're together, it calms down into peaceful ripples that swim around the two of you."

Kaleb couldn't stop a grin spreading across his face. "The snitch."

"You should ask her how she feels, kid."

"You make it sound so easy."

"And why shouldn't it be?"

"You mean beside the whole Jedi thing?" He questioned back sarcastically. "Even when I get up the nerve to tell her it never seems to come out right. I can't ask her how she feels because she can't feel anything. And let's not forget the all too important fact that she would just turn me down…again."

Jolee shook his head and decided to try a new tactic. "Did you always like Bastila on this mission of ours?"

The young man scoffed. "No and yes, if you can believe that. In the beginning, _I_ _couldn't stand_ _her_. The both of us were like oil and water, in my opinion. She had to have been the coldest most uptight woman I'd ever met with this astounding arrogance about her and I was a laid back, happy-go-lucky sarcastic bastard. She was far too focused on this mission thing and I really couldn't care less." His lips formed a slight smile. "I remember when were on Dantooine, it was like a 'who could insult the other person more' contest, but now that I think back, I think we were both trying to prove ourselves to the other at the same time."

"But you like her now. Why is that?"

"Hmm…even if oil and water do separate when you put them together; they still can't help touching. I guess, over time…things just changed between us. I clawed my way past all the jedi crap and saw the real her. The woman who's absolutely gorgeous and probably will never know it, the one who kept her burdens inside so she won't plague anyone else with them, and the one who's soul is so pure that she helps others without a second thought before she would even think about herself."

"Now, if your opinion on her has changed that drastically throughout the mission, how can you think that hers hasn't either?"

Kaleb sighed. "Maybe. Sometimes, I can tell that she feels safe with me and trusts me, but…they're so brief and, just when I thought I've made progress; that damn wall of hers comes back up between us again."

"Then tear it down, kid; brick by brick. Don't listen to what the Jedi in her is saying, but get the real her to talk."

The young man chuckled. "I can't believe I'm taking love advice from a geezer like you, but…thanks." He groaned. "Man we need to stop talking. I think we just had something that was close to a moment."

"What makes you think that I wanted to have this talk with you in the first place; especially with that smartass attitude that you've got. I came out here with intentions to look out at this big blue wet thing they call an ocean. Anything will fascinate an old man like me when the only things I've seen for years were an uncountable amount of trees."

A cold breeze blew past them and Kaleb put his hat on. "As long as you don't have some story about them that'll bore me to tears, we're fine."

"You're one to complain about being talkative. I'm old and can ramble on as much as I like, but what's your excuse for just standing around here chatting me up? That Republic diplomat told me that we have to go to some station that's underwater, so what's keeping you?"

He was shocked as he picked up his guitar. "You're actually volunteering to go down there?"

"It'll be better than just sitting around in that Embassy watching myself age more and more as the hours go by." The old man replied as he started to walk away.

"That is a scary thought, but I want to get this over with as soon as possible anyway." He followed him in. "No use in delaying what you can't change."

----------------------------------------

Kaleb, Bastila, and Jolee exited the submersible and walked up the platform.

"That ride was _so_ _cool_!" The young man exclaimed as he walked into the area. "I mean, it was all with the water so that was kinda scary, but then we were just kept scaring the crap out of those firaxa sharks! It cut through the water like _whoo_! And I was like _whoa_! Then it was all _whoosh_!"

She rolled her eyes. "Boys and their toys."

"Hmm…Do you think if I guilted Roland enough about how we saved his ass, he would let me keep it?"

"The kid sees one shiny thing and he goes crazy." Jolee scoffed as he exited. "It's nothing short of amazing that's he's lasted the mission this long."

Kaleb's smile faded away when he noticed that there were bloody corpses with scratch marks across their bodies littered across the ground.

"Something's not right." He told the group, returning to the task at hand. "We might just have a potential threat from the way these men were killed."

"That's not all." His bond-mate replied. "Do you see that damaged submersible to our far right? What circumstances would make it so that it would crash in so awkward a position?"

"I wouldn't know, but I bet both of the things that have caused these disturbances are one and the same." The old man said to them. "Unfortunately, we don't know who it is that did it."

"Hmm…It seems that we have a mystery on our hands. Everybody, keep your guards up and let's go." Kaleb directed as he walked forward and opened a door.

"How…how did you get in?" A panicked green Twi'lek asked the party frantically. "Did they send another submersible? Quick, we have to get out of here, we have to get away!"

"We are here to assist, but you must calm down." Bastila told him, attempting to pacify his nerves. "The three of us need to know what has happened here."

"No! No!" The alien exclaimed. "We have no time, we have to leave now! I managed to close the door after they killed everyone else, but I don't know how long it will hold."

Kaleb shook his head. "Sorry, but we're not going anywhere."

"We have to! We have to leave! The Selkath, they went crazy! They started killing anything that moved. Someone must have triggered the defense systems too, 'cause all the droids activated as well."

"How 'bout we start off with manners…hi; my name's Kaleb. Who are you?"

"I was…I was one of the mercs the Republic sent down here to find out what happened. We came down and secured the first couple of rooms…there were bodies everywhere…" His eyes widened with fear. "And then the Selkath came out…screaming and croaking their fishy little war-cries."

"Wait, you're telling me that the Selkath attacked you?" He asked the mercenary. "There's just no way."

"No way? Did you think I locked myself up here because I was bored or because I made this up? They swarmed out and over us. There was no way we could stop them…so we ran, but hardly any of us made it. I locked the door behind us, bu…but the others had already left in the submersible!"

"So what happened to them?"

"The sharks…the firaxa out there and…worse…I heard an explosion shortly after the thing left. They didn't make it." The Twi'lek told them in a low tone. "Just food for the sharks and the Selkath…like us."

"Kaleb, we should send this man back up to the surface." Bastila advised. "He's already been through too much."

"Back to the surface?" The merc repeated dreamily. "Yes…_No_! There's something out there…it got the other submersible already. We can't leave until you do something. Blow up the entire station maybe. That might distract whatever it is long enough for us to escape to the surface."

"That sounds like a plan. Where do we have to go?"

"All the machinery and stuff is in the southern half, but that's been flooded! There might still be some environment suits around but…but…the Selkath might have laid their eggs in them!"

Kaleb shuddered. "Nobody told me that they laid eggs! _Ugh, images_!"

The female Jedi sighed. "Well, if we can't go back to the surface, you'll just have to wait here while we go into the station."

"_No_!" The merc exclaimed, boarding on crazy. "I locked the door so that Selkath won't get in. If you open it, we're all done for!"

The young man shrugged. "Tough. To find what we're looking for, we need to get past that door."

"If you go in there, you're dead! You're all dead!" He ranted madly. "If you want to die, then go! You won't hear me mourning for you! I'll stay here and be safe until some sort of _real _rescue comes!"

"Alright, but most of the time the person who's left alone gets eaten first." Kaleb warned as he walked past him and to the other door.

He opened the door and gasped. "_OH MY GOSH_!"

The other two Jedi automatically powered their sabers when they heard him.

"It's…_it's_…an empty corridor!" Kaleb screamed like a little girl. "_No_…it can't be…_wet_! _We're all gonna slip on puddles and die!_" A drop landed on his hand and he hissed. "I'm melting! _Melting_! _Oh_, what a galaxy, what a galaxy!"

Bastila shut off her double saber and gave him a lethal glare. "I actually thought that you were danger, but it only turns out that you were being your usual _stupid self_!"

He couldn't wipe the smirk off his face. "I'm sorry; I couldn't help myself. I might never have gotten the chance to say that and it was one of those things that I had to say before I died."

Jolee grinned. "You have to admit, even though this wasn't the place for it, it was pretty funny."

"Thanks geezer."

She just scoffed in frustration and walked down the corridor without them.

"Dammit…" The young man sighed as he followed after her. "I didn't mean to scare you, Bastila. If I knew you would take that much offense from what I said, I wouldn't have done it."

"Well, excuse me for taking offense from the possibility of your life being in danger!" She shot back, her glare still strong.

His brow furrowed. "Why are you making such a big deal out of this? It's not like this is the first time I've joked around about these kinds of things."

"That's exactly the point! Did you ever think that maybe I don't find the thought of you dying humorous? That I actually care about-" The Jedi abruptly stopped and looked away from him.

"Care about what?" He asked her forcefully, almost desperately.

Bastila shook her head. "E-Enough of this, I meant nothing; just tension from our situation that I'm taking out on you. Let's…let's just find out what we can about the location of the Star Map."

"Bastila, why can't you just-"

"I'm surprised that I've actually found one of these." Jolee's voice interjected before he could finish his question. "Hey kid, you're good with computers. See if you can get access into the cameras so we'll know what we're up against."

Kaleb stared at her for a second longer, hoping that she would say something, but when she didn't he faced the old Jedi. "Sure thing."

He walked over to the tarnished computer panel and accessed its menu. It was child's play to get into the cameras and the screen listed the specific rooms he could glance into.

"Alright, I'm in. There seems to be seven rooms that have cameras in them so I'll see how much damage I can do."

He entered the view on the Central Storage Room Control and waited as it accessed its picture. As gray screen popped up and he saw two Selkath fighting each other in a corner and two others walk around aimlessly raising their fists up in some kind of war cry. Unfortunately, there was a blind spot so he couldn't be sure if that was all of them.

_Hmm… _He examined the screen closer._ There was some kind of smoke coming into the room from the far top right side. _He smiled. _Wonderful, that means that there is a system of vents throughout this station. _

Kaleb re-wired the vents to emit a toxic gas in the room and smirked when he saw all the Selkath hold their throats as they gasped for air, but after a few moments, drop like flies.

_That's one. _

He returned to the System Override menu and went into the camera in the West Storage Room.

_Ok, this one has three- _Another Selkath abruptly emerged onto the screen and startled him as it clawed the air. _Damn blind spots! I can never see how many are actually in the room! _He rolled his eyes and snorted. _What does it matter if I can kill them all with gas anyway? _

The young man was elated when he saw not one, but two vents in this room.

_Oh, this is gonna be fun. _He thought as he re-wired the system again and wished he could see the colorless gas as it flowed throughout the area.

Once again, all of the fish-like aliens chocked to death again.

_Heh, too easy; next? _

Back at the menu, he saw that both the east and south hallway had droids patrolling them, but they didn't have lungs, so he could do nothing to them.

_That's right. Don't make it too effortless; I have to have some kind of fun while I'm in here._

A security room had a better combat oriented droid that looked like he might give a good fight, but he disabled its shield so it would be easier pickings.

He smiled when he glanced upon the Environmental Suit Containment room. _So, that's were we need to go. _

Kaleb accessed the camera and saw that it was littered with bodies and had some lockers probably containing supplies. He also saw one suit and quickly looked for others. _Oh no…please, don't tell me that this is the only one left. Just once, let something convenient happen on this mission. _

His heart sunk when he noticed his searching was in vain. There was only one environmental suit and he knew that he would have to be the one to use it to get into the southern half of the station.

Kaleb turned off the computer console and faced the two awaiting Jedi. "I managed to kill off two rooms of the crazed Selkath, so we should um, be ready to go for that. Unfortunately, I couldn't get any off the droids off-line because they're not connected to that console."

_There was no need to worry them about something so minimal. I'm just gonna have to suck it up and face the music when we get there. _

Jolee nodded. "Good job. That should make things a whole lot easier on our end."

He smiled and nodded back. "Yup. Let's go."

Bastila saw the smile on his face, but felt a small trickle of fear seep through his end of the bond also. _I know that he's scared to be underwater, but I couldn't feel anything before. _

Kaleb walked back down the corridor, after seeing that the door next to him was sealed, and opened the one that they had seen first. As soon as the door opened, a patrol droid automatically started to fire at him. He rapidly grabbed his sabers from his belt and, mere seconds from the blasts singing his face, deflected the shots. As soon as there was a pause in his blaster shots, he sprinted towards them and forced jumped. The young man twisted the left side of his body and sliced the upper part of the first droid's armor in half and then, while still airborne, used the Force to direct his other saber right through the other droid's head. Kaleb deactivated his solitary azure saber as he landed and chuckled as he heard the droid behind him crackle and fall to the ground. The one in front of him was malfunctioning also as bright blue-yellow sparks flew the place his saber made its impact.

"Ooh, pretty lights." He held his hand up and his lightsaber suddenly zoomed towards him and he caught it easily.

The droid started humming uncontrollably and he tsked. "Just can't hang with the big boys, can you Sparky?"

He used the forced jump backwards just far enough so he would be out of range of the imminent explosion that would come from it. Kaleb saw his companion's facial expressions and smirked as the droid blew up behind him.

"Do you remember back on Kashyyyk when we had to fight those droids for that Star Map and I kicked can and took names, but none of you saw it because of the bright lights? _Yeah_…what I just did there, _pretty much_ what happened; an overview if you will."

Bastila had to admit; it was like every time they fought, he became stronger and stronger. It was frightening to watch and yet at the same time, amazing to see him constantly push the limits of what you thought he could do.

"Then you can just clear the whole facility since you're such a show-off." Jolee responded. "Less work for me."

He laughed. "No prob; I can always use the target practice." He started to descend down the hallway. "In fact, let's see if I can find anymore that want to play."

As he kept walking, Kaleb felt apprehension about something, but it wasn't him feeling it.

/You know, it's incredible that our bond has developed so much that we're starting to feel even the slightest trace of emotion from the other./

/Yes./ His bond-mate answered solemnly.

/You should know by now that you don't have to keep anything from me./

/I feel as if I should be telling you that./ She sighed. /I know that something's wrong; you're hiding something from us…from me./

He passed a room full of crates and plastic bins. /I don't know what you're talking about. Besides me being in a closed off station, where no one can hear you scream but the people with you, crazy Selkath, and droids that are more trigger happy than HK; I'm great./

/Kaleb./ She stated, knowing that he was avoiding the subject.

/Uh-huh/

/You're not telling me the truth. Something has made you tenser since you've worked on that one computer./

He stopped in front of a door at placed right across from a dead end.

/Heh, tense? I'm not tense./

Kaleb pressed the button on the door, but it didn't open. He pressed the button with the end result the same and started pressing the button faster.

"Why won't…this _stupid_ door…_open_?" The young man asked, agitation building up within him. "All I want to do, _in the galaxy_, is get through this damn thing!"

His eyes narrowed as he stopped and whipped out one of his lightsabers. "Let's see if how it handles this."

Bastila scoffed as she walked up to him and lowered his saber wielding hand down. "Calm down; you're about to kill a door. It is obvious that it's jammed and we have to go the other way."

Jolee chuckled as he started walking back to the other door. "Oh yeah, that was a total brain buster, huh?"

"Shut-up, old man." Kaleb told him irritably as he clipped his saber back on his belt.

"Oh no; you're definitely not tense." Bastila said cynically.

"I'm not. I just wanted to get through the door, but no, it wants to be evil and not open. I mean really, what use is a door that doesn't open? It's only half of what it's originally supposed to be. It should be called a 'doo' or a…'or'."

"What are you even talking about?"

"I just…hmm…what am I talking about?" He shrugged. "Oh well; let's just keep going." He told her as he headed over to where Jolee was.

The young woman sighed as she followed.

Kaleb gave the old Jedi a look that told him not to be a smartass and scoffed as the other door opened normally.

"See, this is a real door right here. Opens when you press the button and-"

Two insane Selkath roared, their bulgy eyes bloodshot red, charged at the party.

"_What_?" Kaleb exclaimed as he took out one of his sabers. "I didn't get them all?"

One of them swung its claws wildly at him; saliva running down its jaw, but he dug his lightsaber into the ground for balance and kicked it hard onto the ground. It screeched, but he obtained his saber and jabbed it deep into the Selkath's throat before it could get back up. Jolee had put on of them into a stasis just before it tried to attack and cleanly swiped of its head and its body fell backwards. Another mad Selkath leaped out of a corner in the back of the room, catching Kaleb off-guard and managed to cut its claws into the upper part of his right arm. He grunted loudly from the searing pain, but Bastila quickly used one edge of her golden double saber to chop the alien's arm off and she flipped it again to drive it into its chest; decapitating it as she pulled her saber all the way up its torso. Its torn body crumpled to the ground with a sickening squish.

She dropped her deactivated double lightsaber and he winced as she inspected his arm.

Her face scrunched up with worry as she saw a light green liquid mixing with the bloody gash. "It looks like that Selkath has entered some kind of…poison into your bloodstream."

The young man groaned as another sharp pain went through his arm. "Ugh…not again."

Jolee walked over to them. "Here, let me have a look at it."

She moved out of the way and let him look at the damage, but Kaleb looked up at him. "Why is it…that every time you're with me…I get poisoned, geezer?"

He lifted his arm up and tried to let gravity drop out as much of the green liquid as it possibly could. "For once in your life, keep your mouth closed. Talking will just make the poison spread faster." The old man slowly lowered his arm down and began to send healing waves of the Force through the wound.

"Is he going to be alright?" Bastila asked anxiously.

"Well, I couldn't do anything fancy, but I used the Force to slow down the traveling rate of the toxin. I think that he should be ok long enough until we can get back to the surface and get an antidote kit."

Kaleb grinned and flexed his arm. "I'll be fine and just think, that's even more incentive for me to hurry up and get the Star Map."

"No, we're not going to take any chances." She told him aggravated by his reckless attitude. "You'll just have to fall back while we fight from now on; overexertion might accelerate the venom in your system."

"Ok, I won't overexert myself, but I'm not just gonna let the two of you fight alone either. Like the old man said, I should be able to get through this until we reach the surface."

"I said I _think _you're going to be ok until you get to the surface." Jolee reiterated.

"Whatever; hurry up." He told them as he opened the door. "When am I ever going to be able to kick Selkath ass and not be arrested and sentenced to death?"

Bastila groaned. _Why does he always have to be so damn stubborn? _

The next rooms were graciously empty of enemies and Kaleb found a sonic emitter with a scientist's datapad.

He scratched the side of his head as he read it. "Hmm…pretty much a scientist, Caal Jordan, whipped on of these babies up in a workroom one day because of the problem with the firaxa sharks. It says that they also work much better in water than in air because the vibration of the sound travels farther and that you can just place it on the envirosuit and press a button to activate it." The young man smiled. "Nice!"

The three of them kept going and went through two more doors until they saw a heavily armored sentry droid.

Kaleb smirked as his hands neared his belt, but stopped when he could feel Bastila's stare on him.

"Don't even think about it. Jolee and I will fight it and you will stay here."

"Sure." He reached inside his belt and pulled out an ion grenade. "I'll just do a little long-distance offense!" He exclaimed as he threw the explosive with his good arm.

_**Zap**_

A surge of electricity surrounded the droid and automatically took out its personal shield. If a droid could make an angry face, this on had it down pact. It immediately targeted him with some sort of metal nozzle and shot out a cloud flame, but Kaleb jumped out of the way and grunted loudly as he landed on his bad arm.

"And that's exactly why I told you to stay back!" The female Jedi yelled at him. "Maybe now that you've almost broken your arm, you'll listen to me!"

He practiced his arm to see if it was ok as he watched the two Jedi run in the area to fight the machine. Jolee had positioned himself behind the droid and managed to remove one of its legs, but Kaleb was about to get his sabers and run out there when it tried to shoot some kind of blue beam at Bastila. She, of course, dodged it and rebutted by directing almost purplish stream of Force energy at the droid. It suddenly paused and started to sizzle as a little cloud of smoke came out of its chassis and both Jedi took advantage of the momentary pause burned through the left and right side of the droid. When they finished, the machine collapsed into three pieces.

The young man did a one-handed clap as the smoke cleared. "You are _freakin' adorable_ when you're going in for the kill!"

She rolled her eyes. "Your arm hasn't been damaged any further, has it?"

"Nope." He grinned. "It's still almost as good as new."

"And that's no thanks to you. I sincerely hope that next time, you actually heed my warnings."

"Well, if I remember correctly, there shouldn't be a next time because…" He trailed as he walked over to the door and opened it to see a room full of lockers as well as dead bodies. "This is the Environment Suit Containment room." He went to the room. "We've finally made-"

Kaleb stopped and put his finger over his lips to show them to be quiet.

/What do hear/ She asked him telepathically.

/Either I'm going crazy or this locker is whimpering./

He walked up closer to it. "Uh…hello?"

"Is somebody out there?" A masculine voice projected out of the locker. "Fishy, fishy, fishy? Coming to eat me, too? You can't get me fishy. Not in here. I'm safe behind my walls."

Kaleb whistled as he revolved his pointer finger around the side of his head.

"Oh, stop it." His bond-mate chastised him as she approached the locker. "My name is Bastila and my friends and I have been sent by the Republic to investigate what's happened here."

"Investigate?" The voice croaked. "You're just like the others-fodder for the Selkath. Walking fish snacks. Chomp, chomp, chomp-if you run you might be fast food."

Jolee shook his head. "He might be a nut, but at least he can still tell a good joke."

"When the Selkath went insane," The man's tone was much more serious and stable now. "And started killing everybody, I locked myself in here! I'm safe in here. Nothing can hurt me in here! No fishy food for me."

"Do you know what has made the Selkath act this way?" She asked him.

"Don't know. Go ask them." He laughed madly. "When the demon screamed, it shook every mind in the station. We fell to the ground, but survived. Fishy, fishies, though, they just got hungry!"

"Sir, if you come out of the locker; we will protect you from the Selkath."

"No, no, no, no, no." He whined. "That's what the others said. Mercenaries like you. But they're dead. The Selkath ate them! Lunchie-munchie! Only the ones left in the south part of the base might be alive, where the kolto is. Few fishes there! But many, many fishy in between the water!"

Kaleb scoffed, already annoyed with the crazy man's ramblings. "If you don't come out, we'll just have to leave you here."

"Bye-bye." The voice said quickly. "Go look for fishy people. They'll chomp and bite and bite and chomp and bite. Food for fishy-that's you."

The man suddenly went silent and Kaleb shrugged. "What can you do?"

"How can you be so heartless?" Bastila asked him heatedly.

"I'm not, but it's clear that he's not coming out of that locker and we can't do anything to change that." He checked the envirosuit meticulously to see if any Selkath had laid their eggs in it. "Like I said before, what can you do?"

Jolee suddenly eyed the perimeter of the room and saw the suit that Kaleb was inspecting was the only one in the room.

_Oh kid, don't tell me that you're about to do what I think you're about to do. _

The old man looked at him. "So, you're doing it by yourself?"

He nodded to him, knowing that he figured it out. "Yup."

The elderly Jedi sighed. "I'll go see if I can find you a hatch."

He left the room, but the young woman looked at Kaleb's face.

"See if he can find you a hatch?" She repeated, confused.

He kept checking the suit for any punctures or holes. "Well…I think now is as good a time as any. There's only one envirosuit left; this one right here." He could feel a sudden change in Bastila, but kept going. "What I was hiding from you was that I've decided…I'm gonna be the one who uses it."

"And what makes you think that you can come to that decision without any of our opinions?" She ordered more than asked.

"Opinions don't matter; only pure hard facts do. Jolee's way too old to be going out there and would most likely have a seizure from the things that are lurking around."

"And what's wrong with me?"

The young man looked up at her; his features dead serious. "There's no way that I'm gonna let you go out there by yourself."

"Who are you to decide what I can and cannot do, Kaleb?" Her voice was starting to reflect the anger she felt inside. "You can forbid me from going out there and getting killed, but I can't do the same for you?"

His eyes shifted away from her burning gaze and back to the envirosuit. "You're too important, Bastila. If something happened to you out there; the Republic wouldn't have a chance against Malak. Don't worry about what happens to me."

"And if I do worry? If I actually do care about what will happen to you if you go out there by yourself?"

Their eyes battled again, but he didn't ease up on his resolve.

"Then you'll have to get over it." He answered coldly.

"_Get over it_?" She questioned furiously. "You put your _life _on the same level as a missing datapad or a misplaced article of clothing! If you haven't noticed, unlike those other _useless things_, your life _cannot_ be replaced!"

"Even though there would be some setbacks, they're nothing compared to the ones that would happen if you were gone."

Bastila had a scathing glare on her face, but he knew what he had to do.

"_You're_ just being _selfish_!" She spat; no longer caring if she was yelling or if her emotions were getting the best of her. "_How dare_ you sacrifice yourself so effortlessly without a second thought on how it will_ affect_ _others_?"

"Because _I'm_ the only one looking at this situation realistically!" He shot back; her irritation and frustration feeding his own through their bond. "You know that our mission is to get those Star Maps _at any cost_!"

"_Oh, don't give me that!_ Since when have _you_ cared about this mission?"

"What about _you_? Since when have you not put this mission before _anything_ else-_anyone_ else?"

"Maybe you've forgotten another _cold hard_ _fact _Kaleb; _you've been poisoned_! How are you going to manage to get to the southern area, with only half your strength, when there could be countless numbers of firaxa sharks out there?"

"I have a sonic emitter and that datapad said that it'll kill them off easily." He replied unperturbedly.

"It's not going to be that simple! You'll-"

"Look at me." He commanded as he cupped her face so she was forced to comply. "Even you know that you're just rambling and you also know that you can scream at me until you're black and blue, but _I am _going out there." He saw her glare melt from his words while a melancholy expression replaced it and no wound that he had ever received hurt as bad.

"Don't do this, Bastila…"

"_Do_ _what_?" She snapped at him, her voice wavering. "Be sad because you're going into an underwater deathtrap and I can't do anything to stop you? Well, I'm sorry Kaleb, but not everyone is as detached as you!"

"_Detached_? Is the reason why I'm going out there not _painstakingly_ clear?" He scoffed scornfully. "Of course not, because _you don't even know the meaning of the word_! All _you know_ about being human is what you get out of that _damn jedi code!_"

Kaleb took what he thought before back. There was something that pained him more than when she was sad and that was the truly hurt look on her face now.

The rage he felt quickly evaporated and a deep regret came in its stead. "I didn't mean that, it's just…" He sighed. "Do you remember what I promised you when we were in that sith base?"

She closed her eyes; not only because she was unable to look at him as she answered, but also to keep any tears from falling. "That…there was no way that you would let anything bad happen to me."

"Damn straight." He told her with a slight grin, but still saw that her face hadn't brightened. "You're right…I am being selfish and I know that I've got some toxin creeping throughout my body, but you _have_ to know that I would _still_ go out there even if both of my legs were chopped off and there was a saber through my back." Kaleb brushed back a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "I know this isn't what you want to hear, but…you have to understand that I wouldn't be able to live with myself if anything bad happened to you."

He gently placed his hands on her shoulders when he heard her sniff and saw that a solitary tear was let loose down her porcelain like cheek.

Bastila opened her glazed eyes and the sheer sense of sadness that he felt from her was…astonishing was the only word he could think off. The only time he had felt anything close to this degree of depression was…when her father died.

Her mouth parted. "Could you…make me another promise, Kaleb?" The Jedi's voice was so hushed that he could hardly recognize it as he nodded. "Just tell me that you'll…come back unharmed and you won't do anything reckless, because…because I'll never forgive you if I don't give me that cooking lesson, you hear me?" She exclaimed weakly as her voice cracked.

Kaleb smiled and felt a tightness in his chest because he knew that was her way of giving him permission to go; no matter how much she didn't want it to happen.

He wiped her tear away. "You know that I wouldn't miss you burning down the place for anything."

She looked up at him and tried not to let the tears slip, but there was just no way that she could manage it as she started to cry softly; despite her valiant efforts.

"You know what? Words aren't good enough."

Before she could question him on his comment, her eyes widened in shock as she felt the searing thin flesh of his lips press hard against her cheek.

He reluctantly broke contact with her warm skin and bored into her glistening eyes. "That's my promise to you that I'll come back and you know I _never_ break my promises. Especially not those kinds."

Something inside her altered when he kissed her…she didn't know what it was, but the Jedi Code was gradually becoming the farthest thing from her mind.

_Should I…Perhaps…I want to tell him…_

Kaleb saw her gently place her hand on the spot where he had kissed her, but quickly looked away; knowing that his senses would drive him mad from the simple fact that she was simply too intoxicating at the moment. He suddenly turned away to break the spell that she always seemed to cast on him and started to walk back over to the suit, but she clutched his sleeve to stop his process.

_I **need** to show him…to be human just this once…in case he doesn't…and I never get the chance to…_

He sighed as he faced her, but was taken aback when he no longer saw sorrow, but a rebellious longing in her smoky-blue eyes. This time, she was the one who cupped both sides of his face and roughly brought him close enough that he could feel her breath brush against him.

_**Yes**…I **need** it…to have him…**closer**…_

"Bastila, what-"

"_Shhh_…" The young woman placed a finger on his lips. "_Not now._" She commanded huskily; every syllable laced with desire.

His heart starting beating fifty times faster and time seemed to move painstakingly slow as she removed her finger and began to pull his face, his lips closer to hers. He helped of course and was hypnotized by those passionate eyes that were so clouded with untamed lust, but he knew for a fact that hers only mirrored his own.

_She's really…just a little bit more_…_how's my breath…_ Were his jumbled thoughts as he was mere milliseconds away and their lips faintly brushed against each other.

"Ok, kid, I've found you a hatch." A scratchy aged voice announced as Jolee walked into the room.

Bastila's hands abruptly let go of his face and dropped to her sides and Kaleb jerked his face back as the two of them moved away from each other so rapidly, that they resembled the way a magnet acted when two of the same sides came too close together.

"So…uh, y-yeah." The young man started as he nervously scratched behind his ear and pointed up to a random spot of the ceiling. "That…wire up there isn't connected to the, um…other wire and that's why t-the sparks are coming out of t-the…thingy like that, Bastila."

She nodded and attempted to look like this had been what they had been talking about all along.

"Right; thank you for explaining that to me, Kaleb. I completely understand…what it is that you have said."

"That's good because I wouldn't want you to be confused about what that was."

"Yes, it was very…educational."

The old man raised a questioning eyebrow. "Is there some reason why two of you are as shaken up as a Hutt's belly or did I miss something?"

The young man turned to Jolee and gave him a wan smile. "Nope, everything's great. Didn't you say that you found me a hatch?"

"Yeah, I actually had to fight another one of those Selkath to go there; so be grateful. I can lead you to it if you're finished telling Bastila about this station's electrical problems."

"Sure am."

Kaleb handed his knapsack to the old man, walked over to the yellow and black armored envirosuit, and pressed a button on the back of the lower half of it. A stream of smoke hissed from the right side and it opened with a click. He stepped inside the pants like section and they automatically closed in on him. When Kaleb tested out the movement of his legs and saw that everything was working properly, he faced the top part of the suit and picked it up. The young man held it over his head and brought it down until the top and bottom halves were secure. He bent down and was surprised how limber the envirosuit was as he picked up the two armored pair of gloves and put them on one by one.

"Audio systems activate." Kaleb ordered.

_Audio systems activated. _The computer inside of his suit confirmed.

"_Alright, I'm ready." _His speaker effected voice told them.

The old Jedi nodded. "Ok, follow me then."

Jolee left the room and Bastila glanced briefly at the deep blue visor of the envirosuit that Kaleb was behind in a sort of apologetic way, but quickly looked away and followed the other Jedi out.

The young man groaned as he walked out also.

_Thanks old man; I don't think your timing could have been any more perfect. _He thought sarcastically. _So freakin' close!_

He said every curse word he had ever known as he walked out the room; including the alien ones.

-------------------------------------

"_Remind me to never become unmorally fat." _Kaleb replied as he walked slowly, to his two companions pace, to wherever the old man was leading them.

"Ah, stop your griping." Jolee told him irritably. "We're already here."

Sure enough, there was a pressurized door that had a light emanating from it crevices.

The young man felt a sinking feeling, but quickly pushed it back. Even though he was gonna be surrounded by something that he would always be deathly afraid…that was no excuse to pee on himself, run around in circles, and sob uncontrollably.

_No, I promised to save that one for when I face Malak. _He thought with a shaky grin.

Bastila walked in front of him and placed the sonic emitter in its specially designed compartment. "Here you go. You should be able to press the button on the emitter and the sound will kill the firaxa off; like that scientist's memo has said."

"_Thanks. I'm sure it'll work fine; especially now that I know you've attached it." _  
She smiled glumly. "Are you absolutely sure about this?"

"_Yup; besides, I'm too lazy to go through taking off this suit all over again. Maybe, when I get back, you can help me with that." _

She rolled her eyes because, even though she couldn't see his face through the visor, she knew he had that lopsided smirk on his face.

Jolee groaned softly from the two's actions, but the wrinkles on his face built up to create a mischievous grin.

_I'm sure that the lovebirds won't mind having a bit of an audience-not that I would care even if they did._

He rummaged through the kid's bag, found his comlink, and opened it up.

"I'm actually going to act like I didn't hear that because of what you're about to do."

Kaleb grinned at her. _"So, I just have to do something amazingly heroic and brave to get a 'Not have Bastila be incredibly pissed at me' card? What if I…cleaned the bathroom on the Ebon Hawk?"_

She shook her head. "You'll forever be hopeless."

"_I agree. Isn't it wonderful in every single way possible?" _

"Hey, are you hearing this?" Jolee asked Carth; whose mood was rapidly becoming better from what the com was producing.

"_Where are you right now?"_

"We're right in front of a hatch to the ocean and the kid is going out there alone. But if you really want to add a twist; he's been poisoned too."

"_Poisoned…damn, you can't buy that kind of drama. Hold on, Jolee. Mission, hurry up and come here! Oh, and while you're at it; bring some popcorn!" _

"_What's with the rush and why do you want popcorn?" _The young Twi'lek asked, slightly irritated because she was about to take a shower.

The pilot smiled widely. _"Just listen to this." _

"-weird way that I think I'll never understand." Bastila told him.

"_Ah, you'll get used to it some…year." _He looked at the pressure door. _"Well…it's about that time."_

The Jedi sighed, knowing that it would have to come up sooner or later, but really hoped for never.

"Yes…you have to go out there."

"_Hey, I'll be fine. I can't let this whole water thing blemish my 'always survives even when in an incredible amount of danger' record."_

"_Oh man! This is better then 'As the Galaxy Turns'!" _Mission exclaimed as she stuffed her mouth with the buttered popcorn she had hurriedly heated up. _"Who I am kidding? This is better than all the soaps put together!" _

"_Let's just hope that it doesn't have a bad ending." _Carth concluded.

The Twi'lek stopped eating. _"What do you mean a bad ending?"_

"Kaleb has a toxin in his body, so he can perform at only half of his normal abilities." Jolee explained.

"_Kaleb's been poisoned?" _She gasped. _"Just how is he gonna get through the ocean then?" _Mission chuckled. _"This is getting good!"_

Bastila frowned. "I wish that you never had that kind of record in the first place."

"_Yeah…I guess that would be kinda nice, but for now, just remember what I promised you."_ He placed a gloved hand on her cheek. _"I **am** coming back."_

"I know, but…that doesn't make me any less worried for your safety."

"_Well, the bond we have should ease your worries a little. If anything…bad happens to me, you'll know." _

"And I won't be able to do anything." She replied bitterly.

"_Don't say that. You being there for me through our bond is the absolute best thing you could do."_

The Jedi nodded. "True…but I can do something better. Give me your hands."

He was baffled as to what she was about to do, but complied with her demand anyway.

"_They're holding hands?" _A now present Canderous questioned in agitation. _"What the hell; is this preschool or something?" _

"_Ooh, I bet that they're about to kiss!" _Mission exclaimed. _"Bastila's gonna be all, "I love you, Kaleb. I-I loved since the first time I've saw you." _She said in a mock accent. _"And then he'll be all, "Shut-up and kiss me, you babbling fool!" _The teen concluded in a gruff voice and then made smooching sounds with her lips.

Both Carth and the Mandalorian laughed.

"_Damn, I sure as hell hope so." _The pilot commented. _"It took the two of them long enough." _

"_Uh…question?" _

Bastila smiled as she grasped his gloved hands. "I am going to lend you some of my strength through our bond."

He knew that she couldn't see him shaking his head, but he did it anyway.

"_No, we've never tried that before and something bad could happen."_

"I've done it plenty of times with my Battle Meditation; the only difference is now I'll just be giving strength to one."

"_But if you do that, you'll be weakened and I don't want you to be vulnerable while you're in this station filled with who knows how many more, crazy Selkath." _

"You're taking a risk by going out there in the first place, so it's time for me to take a risk also. Besides, I'll have Jolee helping me out while you'll just be by yourself."

"_Bastila…"_

"Please…let me help you in some way since I cannot be with you out there with you in the physical sense."

The young man smiled as he shook his head._ "Well, gosh, I can't say no to that. Just…don't give me so much that you'll be completely drained." _

"Alright; close your eyes."

He did what she asked and she closed her eyes also as she directed her Force energies to him.

"_Hey, what's going-"_

Jolee shut the comlink and put it back in the knapsack when he saw both of his younger companion's energies. Blue ripples of the Force rose up from her and wisped around her bond-mate's significantly weaker life-force; managing to strengthen it and grow. He had honestly never seen two people's Force energies accept each other so willingly and so at peace with each other. It was almost as if the energies were undergoing some beautiful, majestic dance.

Bastila's eyes suddenly opened and drooped from fatigue as she fell backwards, but Kaleb rapidly draped his arm behind her back to stop her descent with his new found strength.

His eyebrows were heavily weighed down with concern as he glanced at her pale skin.

"_I told you not to overexert yourself, but you never listen." _

The old Jedi walked over to him. "She's alright; she just fainted from lack of energy, but how are you?"

"_Me?" _He asked distractedly._ "I'm great, but Jolee, this is probably the best time for me to go and I want you to-" _

"I know, kid. The whole protect her with my life or you'll kill me bit."

Kaleb smiled. _"Yeah, that's about the sum of it."_

He emptied his knapsack with one hand; its items clattering to the floor as he laid it down flat. The young man gently laid Bastila on the material so she wouldn't have to sit on the dirty floor and leaned her back against a part of the wall that was the least stained or corroded.

"_That should do it." _He said to himself.

Once Kaleb was satisfied with where he left her, he headed to the pressurized door.

_ACTIVATING AIRLOCK CONTROLS… _The door's computer announced. _ENGAGING AIRLOCK SEALS…WARNING! HOSTILE ENVIROMENTAL CONDITIONS! ENVIROMENTAL SUIT ADVISED!_

"Kid; I know that you feel better, but don't forget that you're still poisoned."

"_Yeah, I know." _He grinned as he activated the door and it opened. _"I never knew you cared, old man." _

The door swooshed close and Jolee just shook his head. "He's right; I'm starting to get soft." The elderly man scoffed. "Yeah, right."

----------------------------------------

_PRESSURING AIRLOCK SEALS…SUCCESS_

Kaleb exhaled. _"Here we go." _

_RELEASING AIRLOCK SEALS…SUCCESS_

The second pressurized door parted and a rush of water overwhelmed the small door way. Bubbles suddenly started streaming out of his oxygen pack on his back as he took his first steps out.

"Ok…I've got this; I'm inside and the water is outside. It's can't touch me, just the suit and I'll be completely dry."

As he kept 'walking', he looked around that the walls seemed to be moving faster than him.

"_What the-ok, this was cute for the first couple of steps, but now it's just pissing me off." _He tried to go faster, but he sighed as the envirosuit didn't budge. _"Oh you've got to be kidding me! This suit only has one speed!" _

Kaleb groaned as he kept…whatever the hell he was doing because he wasn't walking, and saw that he was coming up to an intersection that had an opening to the left and right.

"_Walking in slow motion, huh?" _He asked himself as he remembered what Bastila had told him when she taught him how to swim. _"I take it all back; you just don't know how right you were." _

Kaleb almost hopped out of his suit when he suddenly saw another envirosuit wearing person to his left.

"_There's somebody still alive left down here?" _

The young man did the closest thing to running towards the person as he possibly could and they faced him.

"_Who's there?" _The man asked worryingly, but sighed in relief._ "You're not Selkath, I can see that much. Are you another rescue crew?" _

"_I guess I am technically, but Roland Wann sent me down here to investigate what happened down here. Who are you?" _

"_Oh, I'm a merc the Republic hired a couple of days ago to investigate-but all we found was a bunch of insane Selkath killing everything that moves!"_

"_Yeah, I know first hand about what you're talking about." _

"_All my companions are dead. The Selkath swarmed over us-there were dozens! And they…they looked wrong, somehow. Like something inside had changed inside them. Crazy or something…" _He trailed thoughtfully.

"_So, why are you just standing around here?" _Kaleb asked, breaking him out of his reverie.

"_I would have gone back to the surface long ago if this complex hadn't been overrun by all those crazy Selkath! There's no way for me to get to the submarine docking bay."_

"_Is that why you came here then?" _

"_Yes, I've discovered a way to get to the bay and seal off the rest of the base. I just have to find the kolto harvester they built on the edge of the Hrakert rift."_

"_Oh yeah. That's what that one Twi'lek told me I needed to find when we came in here." _

"_I bet. It's got an emergency override to open the doors to the submarine docking bay and I could get in from the outside. I figured that I'd only have a chance if I slapped on an environment suit, head out to the ocean floor, and check the harvester out myself." _The man scoffed. _"Besides, it's got to be safer out on the ocean floor than back in there with all those crazed Selkath mutants running around looking for dinner." _

"_That is an excellent point, but it sounds like you've been through enough. You should wait here while I go check it out." _

"_I'm not spending another minute in this facility-not with these psychotic fish people running all over the place!" _

Kaleb sighed. _We've got ourselves another hero._

"_I'm heading out to the ocean floor right now-it leads to another complex of buildings. Going through them is the only way to reach the kolto harvester." _

"_Well then, at least let's stick together." _

"_Sure, but I'm not waiting around here with the Selkath. You can catch up with me if you want-down the hall and through the doors on the right. I'll be waiting on the ocean floor where it's safe." _

The young man nodded and started to follow the man out, but the merc quickly outran him and turned a corner.

"_Damn, he can move fast in that suit!" _He exclaimed as he just reached the edge of the corner. _"I've gotta ask that guy for some tips."_

When he was finally going through the opening to the ocean, he saw the man signal to him to follow.

"_Come on-hurry!"_ He cried out. _"Don't just stand there, we have to keep moving! The water is filled with-"_

The mercenary suddenly turned around and let out a bloodcurdling scream as a huge firaxa sharp caught him in its mighty jaws.

"_Oh shit!"_ Kaleb exclaimed as he rapidly looked around to see if there were any more firaxa around before stepping out onto the seabed.

He saw a firaxa shark that was blocking his way, but the speed that he actually was using to get to it was aggravating in every way possible.

"_All I want to do is kill the shark, but **no**! This **stupid suit **is so **freakin' slow** that even the bubbles down here would beat me in a race!"_

When he finally got close enough, his suit computer targeted the firaxa. _Warning_-_Firaxa shark in close proximity. Prepare to engage. _

"_Thanks suit! I totally didn't see him! **Freakin' saved my life**!" _

The young man saw the shark cautiously head towards him, but he stopped moving and, as he had expected, the shark darted in his direction. Kaleb pressed the button on his chest plate and a piercing sound emitted from the suit; killing the shark instantly.

He repeated this technique another hatch that led into the other building.

"_Yes!" _He shouted joyously as he ran crookedly to the semi-secluded metal doorway. _"Run, Kaleb! **Run!**" _He exclaimed in a thick country accent and a huge smile on his face. _"I did it!" _

His feet made a clunking sound as they landed on the sand covered metal. Just as he was about to reach for the pressure door; an excruciating amount of pain traveled up his right arm and it felt like something was squeezing it with an incredible amount of force.

----------------------------------

Bastila eyes suddenly snapped opened when their bond wavered. _Something was or did hurt him-badly._

"Kaleb?" Her eyes darted around the room, but were disappointed when she only saw a resting Jolee, opposite of her. "He's left already, hasn't he?"

"Yes, he has." The old man answered without opening his eyes. "But I'm sure he that he'll be fine."

She nodded and saw Kaleb's supplies next to her, but smiled slightly when she got up.

_He must have let me sit on his empty knapsack so I wouldn't have to sit on the floor. Even when his own life was about to be in constant jeopardy, he still cared about her well-being first. _

Bastila stared out of the large filthy transparasteel window to the ocean, but knew that she wouldn't see him. The Jedi tried to reach out through their bond and was not surprised that he had dampened his side of it. It was clear enough that she could still feel his life-force, but couldn't contact him at all.

_He must have thought that he didn't need any distractions and I don't really blame him, but…I wish I knew what has harmed him._

It seemed that on this planet, every time Kaleb's life had been threatened, she could do nothing to stop it herself and infuriated her to no end that she was so useless to him. Every time she was in trouble or needed help he would just come swooping in to rescue her, but she couldn't even lend her strength to him without fainting. One thing about Kaleb was that, besides anything that tried to get in his way or hinder his progress, he always managed to find a way out of it by himself. In that way, he made her feel disgustingly weak, but it was something else also. The opposite side of the coin.

_When did my heart become my greatest foe? _

It was…hard to admit, but by being a Jedi, she was sure that she was immune to certain emotions or expressions that other…normal people dealt with. But when she was near him…so many things that she thought would never be a problem for her…they seemed to take over and overwhelm. How she became around him…it was so easy to let him in. She didn't know if he did it intentionally or not, but either way the feeling was…unparalleled to anything else she had ever experienced, but absolutely despicable at the same time.

It wasn't only that he made her feel vulnerable, but that he made the decisive, strongly-opinionated, and focused person become a very feminine, demure, and self-conscious fool. Even the slightest touch from him sent precious sweetness rushing throughout her skin and every single time she looked into those light honey eyes, there was a silent war going on between the two of them. A war that she had clearly lost given her actions when they were alone.

_Why was I about to kiss him? Did I just to it because I thought he might die? _

She knew that was only the excuse she used at the time to justify her actions, but…the sudden pang of desire that wracked through her…

_**Oh Force**, I've never…felt…**this** before. I just wanted him…needed him so badly…and if Jolee didn't come in when he did… _

The young woman knew there was no way that she could have stopped herself.

_**Dammit**, I can't even control myself around him anymore! He's become like some virus that's in my system that I can't stop thinking about…that I'm becoming addicted to._

"Pacing around isn't going to do you any good, you know." Jolee told her; his eyes opened now.

_Was I pacing? I didn't even notice._

The old man continued. "And it certainly won't change facts."

Bastila was curious about what he said. "What do you mean by that?"

"I think that you know what I mean or at least, what I'm implying."

She looked away from him. "It's nothing you need to concern yourself with."

"You know, you're right; until what's going on between the two of you is so obvious that it becomes the business of not only me, but others also." He dusted his robe off. "Why both of you fear that those feelings won't go away. But, again, I don't make a habit of giving my opinion so I'll just leave you with a statement that will hopefully show you what the real right thing to do is; for at least the kid's sake because when I look at him, I see the same symptoms I had ages ago. You may think that the Council knows every single thing that this galaxy can offer, but at the end of the day; they're just plain mortals like the rest of us." Jolee closed his eyes once again. "And believe me, the sooner you understand that; the better. The last thing you want to do is have to learn that the hard way like I did."

She just glanced back out the window, saying nothing.

-----------------------------------------

Kaleb struggled with the removing of his envirosuit from him not being able to fully use his right arm to help. When he was finally able to get the clunky suit off of himself, he was about to walk to the seemingly clear opening, but saw four Selkath stalking the left corner of the area.

_With my stronger arm shot, it's more than likely that I'd get hurt if all of them attacked me at once and I definitely can't risk getting poisoned again. _

He took out two adhesive grenades and threw at the two groups of two Selkath. A bulbous and ultraviolet blue liquid sealed the aliens in place, but Kaleb instinctively grabbed a saber with his left hand when some sort of propelling bullet was shot at him. He had never seen such old-fashioned guns since he lived in Deraila, but as soon as he had a chance he lunged a frag at the group of insane Selkath. Not being able to move away, they're fates was to be splattered against the wall or sprawled out on the floor.

"Gotta love grenades. They always get the job done." The young man stated as he continued on.

Kaleb opened a door and a purple force field was the first thing that caught his eye. As he came closer, he saw a man and a woman on the other side.

He smiled and went up to the barrier. "Good; somebody else has survived this thing. Are you two alright?"

"No-no, you can't come in here!" The man exclaimed hysterically. "You'll let the firaxa and the Selkath in!"

The young man shook his head. "Look, calm down. I already-"

"No-stay out! Stay out!" The man screamed before he could finish. "I won't let you open the door for those monsters to get in! I'll stop you! I'll suck all the pressure out of the chamber! That'll stop you!"

"Kill him! Kill him now!" The black woman egged him on.

The man suddenly ran over to a panel and rapidly pressed some buttons.

"Wait! I'm not here to hurt you!" Kaleb tried to explain.

_Sixty seconds to complete depressurization. _

The young man's eyes widened as it suddenly became harder to breathe. "No-if you keep doing this…you're gonna kill me!"

"No…the firaxa…the…the Selkath…" The man trailed desperately. "I…I can't let you in. They'll get us!"

_Fifty-four seconds to complete depressurization._

"Shut the…hell up!" He exclaimed to the mechanized voice. "Dammit, I literally don't have time for this!" He waved his left hand. "I'm a friend. You want…to let me in. You want to stop the…the depressurization sequence." He told him in monotone.

"Yes…you're a friend. You'll protect us from the Selkath; you'll help us find a way out of here. You won't let the firaxa eat us." He replied in a trance like state. "I'll disperse the force field, but you have to come in quickly!"

The field faded away and the depressurization was aborted as air flowed through the air once again.

"No! No!" The woman exclaimed crazily and then screamed.

"Stop screaming!" Kaleb yelled back, already outraged at the fact that he had almost died from their hands.

The woman screamed again, but the man tried to pacify her nerves.

"Sami, calm down! I think he's not here to harm us."

"You mean?"

"Yes, I think he may have been sent down to help us out."

"I don't know…most of the time I don't help people _who try to kill me_!"

"Look, I'm sorry! I have been under a lot of stress lately, like seeing my whole research team ripped to pieces before my very eyes!"

"And what? You don't think that I haven't been through some of the same shit!" He shot back. "Not only has a Selkath scratched _the fuck_ out of my arm, but now some deadly toxin is in my body! Anybody else who is dying a slow and painful death, raise your _gatdamn hand_!"

"Kono and you-stop yelling!" She exclaimed to the two men. "It's not helping our situation in the least!"

The man inhaled deeply and exhaled. "Just…I am sorry for my actions. I know that you had to have gone through most of the same things, but…Sami and me…I-I thought we were the only ones left. We heard the Selkath outside at the doors every once in a while…and those strange noises echoing through the base."

Kaleb nodded, trying to bring his own anger down. "I need…to ask you some questions."

"Oh…okay. What is it you want to know?"

"A Star Map? We haven't heard of anything like that during our excavations down here."

"But…there were some ruins that were excavated when we were digging the foundations for the last section of the kolto harvesting machine." She told him.

"But we can't go anywhere near those now! Maybe…maybe that's why it all happened in the first place…" Kono trailed ominously.

"Something happened in the ruins?"

"We don't know…well, not for sure." Sami commented.

"The work teams were outside in the Rift near the vent. Then there was this rumbling and my head felt like it was splitting open."

"This…monster rose up from the Rift."

"Monster? What kind of monster?"

"It was a firaxa shark I think…bigger than any I'd ever seen before. Bigger than our submersibles!" Kono Nolan exclaimed.

"It was like it was screaming inside my head…"

"Then all the Selkath started screaming too…and they turned on us."

"Hmm…" Kaleb trailed in thought. "Could it have been protecting something?"

"It may…it may have been. It might have a lair in the Hrakert Rift near the kolto vent. Hmm…that may explain a few things too…"

"I don't understand. Nobody knew about this thing before?"

The man shook his head. "We had no clue at all…until it came out. Maybe whatever power it used to drive the Selkath insane masked it from us somehow…or maybe it was lying dormant deeper in the Rift."

"Maybe it was there trying to protect the kolto." The young man suggested.

"A possibility…that would explain why it reacted so violently when our construction efforts got closer to the vent and also why it is so large. It would have to be ancient indeed for it to reach that size. But with kolto as a food source…"

"And those other firaxa sharks!" Sami suddenly interjected. "Those might be its offspring!"

Kaleb nodded. "That makes sense. All of those firaxa are swarming out there because there mother has called them for its protection, but…I need to find a way past it so I can get to the Star Map."

"Are you crazy? That would be suicide! That…thing is still out there!"

"Out there waiting for us…" Sami trailed, paranoia settling inside her again.

"So, what can I do about it?"

"The firaxa sharks have always been a serious problem. We had some and projectile cannons to defend against them, but they still got some of our workers from time to time."

"We were working on soluble chemical compound that would drive tem away. Something that smelled or tasted repulsive to them, but we never got it working right."

"Oh, I think not!" Nolan argued with her. "Even flawed like it is, it should be ideal for this situation."

"No! It's not working right! You don't know what it will do!"

Kaleb put his good hand up to silence them. "Ok, how about somebody tells me what this compound is?"

Sami looked at him. "The repellant we made was supposed to drive firaxan sharks away, but we never got very far in this development. The one we tested instead was violently toxic to them, rupturing their outer skin in seconds and preventing them from drawing oxygen from the water by clogging their intakes."

"Exactly!" Kono Nolan directed at her. "That's exactly what we need in this situation! Something to kill that monster shark that destroyed our station!"

"But we don't know how else the chemical reacts! We only tried it in a controlled environment; on the open ocean, who knows what it could do…it could even affect the kolto."

"We know exactly what it will do; it'll kill the shark. That's what it's designed to do."

Kaleb shook his head. "I don't want to take the chance of polluting the kolto, so is there anything else I can do?"

"I think if you could destroy the machinery we installed, the shark would calm down and retreat back into its lair inside the Rift."

"Sounds like a plan. How do I go about doing that?"

"You can reprogram the harvesting machines to overpressure their self-oxidizing fuel, so that the fuel tank canisters will rupture and the entire machine will destroy itself. The Hydrolium gas we use is a gas at 1 to 3 million sangen, a liquid at about 4 million sangen, and a solid above that. When it's a liquid it's _very _explosive."

"So, the point is to get it into a liquid form?"

"Yes, if you inject enough of the Hydrolium gas into their tank, the pressure will be so great that it will turn to liquid form and start a chain reaction inside the machine."

"But, if you do that, we'll lose everything we've built here!" Kono protested. "All those years of work!"

"You're willing to mess with their supply of kolto just so you can save the stupid machinery?" The young man asked angrily. "It seems to me like that machinery is what caused all of this in the first place, so I'm gonna destroy that thing."

Sami smiled. "Good! Destroying the machinery will be better in the long run. We can't risk damaging the environment or the kolto. Once the machinery is gone, the shark should leave."

"That's not gonna work and you know it! We have to vent the toxin from the harvesting machine. Once the shark is dead, we can get back to mining the kolto."

Kaleb brushed past the two scientists when his eyes fell on an envirosuit abandoned in a corner and he started to go through the process of putting it on again.

Both of them faced him.

"You know what you have to do." The man told him sternly.

"I just hope you make the right choice." Sami replied softly.

When he was fully suited, he chuckled. _"I guess we'll find out, huh?" _

The pressurized door opened and he stood in the airlock waiting for the other door to open. After the computer's instructions, the door slid open and Manaan's ocean once again enveloped him in its waters.

But that was the only thing that welcomed him because as soon as he set out, a firaxa jetted toward him with its jaw baring all its jagged teeth. Kaleb pressed the button just in time before the shark's jaws grabbed his helmet and it turned upside down and floated towards the ocean. The young man didn't even have time to sigh in relief as another shark spotted him and came his way.

Kaleb rapidly pushed the button in again, but it didn't let out its sonic waves.

"_What the hell?" _He kept pressing the button, but the result was the same.

He was about to slam it with his fist, but his peripheral vision caught a tiny screen inside his helmet that showed the emitter recharging.

"_It's charging?" _

Even through his extreme frustration, Kaleb knew that he had never had to use the emitter so much in such a short amount of timing. The firaxa clearly couldn't care less as it swished its tailfin faster to gain speed.

_7 seconds until emitter recharge. _The suit informed him.

"_Come on! Come on!" _He shouted at the computer as he couldn't help but flex his fingers in anticipation.

_3 seconds until emitter recharge. _

The shark was so close that the he could see the defined blue scales on its face also the spiny sharp teeth that were getting ready to enclose him.

"_Dammit, if I wait any longer, all I'm gonna see is this bastard's esophagus!" _

It was like slow motion, especially for him, when the firaxa's jaws widened and the young man slammed the emitter button on the front of his suit.

_Recharge complete. _

A wave of sonic energy blasted out throughout the open ocean; killing the firaxa shark instantly.

Kaleb's eyes were wide open as he panted heavily and still pushed in the emitter's button. After his mind registered the situation, he let out a long sigh.

"_I think I just seriously crapped myself." _He shook his head. _"The faster I get to that machine, the faster I can get my ass out of here." _

The young man made his way to the kolto harvesting machine and his mouth dropped when he saw an outrageously gigantic firaxa shark on the right side of a metallic bridge that lead to the Star Map. He slowly turned away from the monster firaxa and focused on the kolto control panel.

_ACCESSING HARVESTER CONTROL…SUCCESS _

_HARVESTER STATUS…_

_NOMINAL...COMMAND QUERY? _

He clicked 'Access fuel tank pressure control'.

The panel showed a camera view of him and the level of liquid in the two tanks.

"_Well, don't I just look like a hero? All suited up and whatnot." _He said to himself with a grin.

_FUEL INJECTOR POD AT 3 OF 2 MILLION SANGEN _

_CONTAINER POD AT 5 OUT 5 MILLION SANGEN…COMMAND QUERY?_

"_Ok, I need to get the injector pod to one million sangen and the container pod at three million sangen. Well, the second part is easy enough." _

Kaleb pressed dump the container pod and then transferred the injector to the container.

_INJECTOR POD AT 0 OF 3_

_CONTAINER AT 3 OF 5_

"_Uh…I guess I'll fill the injector pod." _

_INJECTOR POD AT 3 OF 3 _

_CONTAINER POD AT 3 OF 5_

"_Hold on…I think I'm having a thought!" _

He put in the command to the fuel from the injector to the container.

_FUEL INJECTOR POD AT 1 OF 3_

_CONTAINER POD 5 OF 5_

Kaleb sighed. _"Alright, the hardest part is over…kinda. I'm gonna have to do something so crazy and reckless that only I can get away with it." _

The young man dumped the container pod, transferred the injector to the container, and then filled the injector pod.

_FUEL INJECTOR POD AT 3 OF 3_

_CONTAINER POD AT 1 OF 5_

"_What? That actually worked?" _He laughed. _"I have no idea what I did, but go me!" _

He ordered the panel to transfer the injector to the container.

_ERROR ERROR! HAVERSTER MALFUNCTION _

The young man did the closest thing to dancing in his suit that was possible. _"Go, Kaleb! It's my birthday! Not for real real, just for play play! Hey!" _

_EMERGENCY SHUTDOWN INITIATED…FAILURE_

He stopped 'dancing' when he saw the words on the screen. _"Uh-oh, that can't be good." _

_WARNING! WARNING! _

_CONTAINER POD UNSTABLE! _

_10 SECONDS UNTIL COMPLETE MELTDOWN! EVACUATE IMMEDIATELY!_

"_Oh, come on! How can anyone escape with only ten seconds?" _He exclaimed as he used the Force to propel himself over to a thick metal column for cover from the blast.

Just as he was still suspended in the water and about to land in front of the column, the harvester machine exploded; its after-explosion shockwaves hurling his smack dab into the dark metal pillar.

He heard a crackling noise and looked up to see that there was a dent that had dozens of cracks jetting from it; the water pressure only making it worse as droplets fell into his suit. The young man decided not to talk just in case he needed to save air and wasted no time as he waddled over the bridge to the Star Map; not even noticing that the huge firaxa shark had let him pass. The map presented its coordinates and he downloaded them onto a datapad. When it was done, he walked/floated back to the across the bridge, but noticed that the droplets that were leaking into his envirosuit had become a steady stream of water; making it harder to see as the saltwater stung his eyes.

Kaleb had just passed the floating bodies of the firaxa that he killed, when the pressure on his visor had become too much and the dent became a hole. The water rushed into his suit and he took a quick breath and held it before it came up over his face. The suit was cemented to the seabed as it became completely immersed with water and he knew that he would have to get out so he could be reach the pressure door. He slammed a gloved fist against the middle of the belt that connected the top and bottom halves together.

_EMERGENCY EXIT OUT OF ENVIROSUIT ACTIVATED. _A mechanized voice confirmed. _WARNING! ENVIROSUIT IS OPENING WHILE STILL IN HOSTILE CONDITIONS._

The upper part of the suit suddenly floated up as the belt released and he used his newly learned swimming skills to guide his body out of the lower half. It felt like his lungs were aflame, but tried to use his arms to lead him to the hatch. Bubbles escaped his mouth as he screamed in aguish when he tried to stretch his right arm.

_The poison must be back to its full potency. _

Kaleb immediately closed his mouth again and propelled his legs harder since he only had the function of one arm; pressing the open button on the pressure door as soon as he was close enough. It slid open and he rapidly swam into the airlock impatiently waiting for the water to be gone. Holes in the wall opened and started sucking the liquid out as the other door parted. Kaleb plopped onto the floor with a small wave accompanying him and, as soon as it was available, inhaled gracious amounts of oxygen and exhaled them quickly to inhale once again.

Sami saw the shivering man's soaked body and ran toward him, but Kono walked over with no real rush.

"Why aren't you in your envirosuit?" She asked him as he started to get up.

"It-" He had to take another breath. "I had a leak…in the suit. So, I had to…abandon it and swim to the door. Luckily…the firaxa weren't trying to kill me anymore."

"Yes, we saw what you did out there on the cameras. Destroying the machinery was the right thing to do, for everyone."

The male scientist snorted. "I can't believe that you actually did that! How can you willfully destroy the kolto harvesting machinery! That will set us back years!"

"But…you'll still have kolto." Kaleb told sternly; not in the mood for his lecturing. "If I put in that poison…how many more would have died because there was no non-tainted kolto around?"

"He's right, Kono." Sami told him. "You know that we can rebuild that machinery, but the kolto couldn't be replaced so easily."

He gradually nodded. "You're right; we still can use the kolto and that's all that matters."

The woman walked over to a footlocker and took out an antidote kit. "Here. You said that you had peen poisoned by one of the Selkath and this is the least that I can do."

He smiled as he took the kit out of her hands. "Thanks."

Kaleb rolled up the sleeve of his red shirt, opened the green kit, and injected the serum into his right arm. He sighed as he felt the constricted feeling go away and slowly swung his arm back and forth.

"It's still a bit weak, but I'm sure it'll get better after a little while." The young man looked back up to the scientists. "Do you want me to take you back up to the surface?"

Kono shook his head. "Thanks, but no thanks. We're gonna stay here and try to salvage some things before the Republic rescue crews come and get us."

"Uh, question. I really don't want to have to go through the whole envirosuit experience again and this merc that I met told me that there was a submersible docking bay over here."

"Oh, right. There is a dock over here and now that the giant firaxa has calmed down significantly, it should be safe to go outside now." Sami informed him. "Come on, I can show you where it is if you just follow me."

-------------------------------------

Bastila and Jolee had felt a deep rumbling throughout the building less than five minutes ago, but she couldn't stop her mind from thinking of the worst possible scenarios.

_Those vibrations had to come from some kind of explosion. What if something fell on him and prevented him from moving?_ _He would forever be stuck out there with those firaxa sharks or even worse…no._

The young woman stopped herself and took a deep breath knowing that her thoughts were foolish. His end of the bond would have been severed if he died, but it was till intact; if not weak. She would just have to wait for him to return like he said he would. That was all she could-wait.

_He was capable and there was no way that-_

His side of the bond had suddenly become stronger, clearer.

Bastila gasped. "Kaleb's here…he made it."

Jolee stood up. "You mean actually in this facility?"

She nodded distractedly as she re-filled his knapsack and ran out the room to meet up with him.

The old Jedi scoffed. "Young people just have no sense of patience these days."

-------------------------------------

Kaleb stepped out of the submersible and was back at where they had started out.

"Oh well. This is definitely better than having to go through the water in that suit again."

He walked back through the first door, but stopped. "Something's not right here." His eyes searched the room. "What happened to that Twi'lek that said he was going to be here?"

A man with sickly pale skin and a goatee walked into the room with a twisted grin on his face. The young man automatically noticed the green headtails that the man was holding to be those of the merc he was searching for.

"You killed him?" Kaleb asked, his eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Of course." The clipped voice answered. "He wouldn't stop his incessant crazed ramblings so I thought I would end it permanently." His grin grew as he tossed the head away without a second thought. "At last; my search must be over! I was beginning to fear someone else had killed you and deprived me of the pleasure."

Kaleb examined the man's ebony body armor that supported his neck and had a black robe underneath it. Something about it all was vaguely familiar for some reason…

He glared at the Sith. "So not only do you kill an innocent mercenary, but you were also the one who killed Trask when I was on the Endar Spire."

"Ah, I'm honored that you remember me. Yes, it was I, who was distracted by that idiotic Republic soldier, and missed the chance to kill you and end the whole thing before it started." He took out a double saber hilt. "You may have defeated that pathetic bounty hunter with some sort of luck, but I assure you that you are no match for me. I have studied at the foot of the Dark Lord himself!" He exclaimed with obvious pride from his position.

"Darth Bandon…How did you even get down here?"

"Do you think those Republic subs are the only way to reach the ocean floor? Malak and Revan found a way down here long before the Hrakert station was built. I acquired a ship and followed the same route Revan and my Master used on their own journey. Then it was simply a matter of waiting for you to return for the Star Map."

"Well, since you said that you're Malak's lapdog, I'm guessing that means that you're weak also…or is it weaker? Oh, well."

He unclipped both of his sabers and powered them; just happy that he'd actually be able to fight him with almost all of his original power. His right arm was still sore, but more than capable to wield a saber with his usual deadly precision.

Darth Bandon scowled as he activated his blood red double lightsaber also. "You're words mean nothing to me…unless you wish to beg for your life."

He put a hand on his chin in thought. "Hold on…um, let me think about that for sec…nope, I don't' think so, but kudos for trying!"

"No? Then I shall try my best to make this both quick and painful!"

The Sith started out with heavy attacks that made them lock sabers on several occasions. Kaleb broke the contact a quick jab to the lower left side of his stomach and twirled his other to strike at his head. Bandon rapidly knocked the first attack away, so that he would have more than enough time to block the other one too.

"If this is all the skill that you can muster, this battle will be over sooner than I thought!" The man jeered as he handled his saber with on hand and came down on him with a circular slash.

The young man smirked. "Well, I wouldn't want to disappoint."

He stopped the Sith's blade while it was still in a semi-circle and pushed it back on him, but Bandon halted his lightsabers advance just before it touched his jet black chest plate.

Malak's apprentice chuckled darkly. "Interesting…let's see if you can make this fun for me before your head hits the ground then."

Kaleb flicked both his saber in an impressive and swift manner and then dropped them in a low stance as his sabers made an X. "Funny, you took the words right out of my mouth."

This time, the Sith belted out quick targeted strikes to try and make on hit kills, but he blocked and repelled every single one. The young man knew the Bandon was trying to target his right arm because it was slightly weaker and he was going to play into it. The man clutched his double saber with both hands and made a vehement attack on his right lightsaber, just as he had expected. It flew out of Kaleb's hand and slid across the cracked metal floor as he was pushed back by the attack.

"Ha! Did you think you could actually defeat me with such a slow arm?"

"Actually, no." The young man held his the lightsaber he had with both hands. "But I do expect to beat you with two of them."

Kaleb went into a spin as he Force jumped towards the Sith and let gravity aid him as his azure blade of energy came down on Bandon's saber wielding arm; hacking it off with a clean slice.

The young man heard his agonized screams as he landed and faced him. "Who was it that had the weak arm now?"

The Sith fell to his knees and he walked next to him.

"I actually think that I'll give you the honor of dying the same way you murdered that Twi'lek."

Bandon's eyes widened in horror as he ended it by making a rapid sweep through his neck and the piece of armor that was covering it; the nub sizzling as the man's decapitated head fell to the ground.

The young man grinned as he powered down his weapon. "That one was for you, Trask. Wherever the hell you are, I know that you're smiling…or shouting "For the Republic" like an idiot, but whatever."

The young man picked up his other saber and clipped both of them back on his belt, but grinned when he felt that his bond-mate was close. He walked up to the hallway and saw her come out of another door.

"I told you that I _never_ break my promises." He said to her with a wink.

Bastila's entire face brightened when she heard his voice and she ran over to him. "Oh Kaleb, thank the Force you're alright! I was so worried when I felt those vibrations and thought that it had to have been from an explosion, but-" Confusion spread across her face when she saw his drenched clothes. "Why are you so wet when you had on that envirosuit?"

"Yeah…well, story time. You were right about the whole explosion thing. I had to destroy that kolto harvester because there was some kinda giant firaxa guardian thing that made some sort of noise and made all the Selkath go crazy in the first place. Also, those firaxa sharks outside were its babies, I think, so maybe the Selkath are descendents of it because they were affected too. Anyway, after the whole explosion thing, I was sent sprawling into a metal column and I hit it so hard that it cracked my suit's visor. So, now I'm all running," He scoffed. "Well not running because that stupid suit couldn't go any faster than a space slug on a good day, but kinda bootlegged floating to get to the Star Map while the cracks in my helmet were leaking. Then, I got the info as fast as possibly could and float walked back over the bridge, but as I passed the firaxa that almost killed me because my emitter wasn't fully charged, the water pressure finally broke a hole in my visor and the water's filling up the suit. Too much water was in there and it wouldn't move, so I had to abandon the envirosuit and swim to the pressure door."

The young woman was stunned. "You had to get out of your envirosuit and swim back to the other building?"

"Yup; it hurt too much to use my right arm because of the whole poison thing, but my left was good enough to get me there; so good thing you taught me how to swim or I would've been in a pretty bad situation. I still forever hate water, but at least in now what to do in case I'm in it."

Bastila immediately hugged him, despite his wet state and he groaned softly.

"I'm glad to see you to, but…Bastila, my body's still pretty weak and you're…squeezing me really tightly…it's…sorta a bittersweet thing going on here."

"Oh, I'm sorry!" She quickly let go off him. "You're still poisoned."

He shook his head. "No, actually one of the scientists I met gave me an antidote kit, so the poisons gone, but my body's still hurts and fighting that Darth Bandon guy really didn't help."

"Darth Bandon?" She asked absolutely shocked. "Malak's apprentice Darth Bandon?"

"Yeah, he said that he followed the same path that Revan and Malak used to come down here and just waited until we would come get the Star Map. Unfortunately, he killed that merc we met in the beginning, so I still couldn't help him; but at least I returned the favor."

"Hmm…Malak must be getting desperate to actually send down his own apprentice to fight us."

Jolee strolled into the room and looked at the be-headed body of the Sith.

"Well, it's evident that somebody had fun without me."

"Hey, old man! Did you miss me?"

He snorted. "If you call me wanting you to hurry up so I can get out of this place missing you, then yes, I missed you terribly."

"I can't blame ya. I couldn't be any more ready to go either." Kaleb told him as he walked up to the submersible and the top rose up. "Shotgun!"

Bastila sighed as she followed him into the sub. "I'll never understand where you get all this energy from."

"Oh that's easy! I eat my vegetables and drink milk!" He answered with a smile. "I don't want to turn into a Jolee when I grow up!"

The old Jedi sat back into the seat and the top of the sub closed. "Ah, just drive."

"Aye, aye; captain!" He chuckled. "I've always wanted to say that."

-----------------------------------------

"Awesome!" Kaleb exclaimed as he stepped out of the submersible. "You just never get tired of that!"

"I do." Jolee stated. "There was no need for you to go around that one boulder three times."

The young man's smile faded away when he saw Roland Wann approach them.

"Let's hope that he's not gonna give us a 'task' just so we can leave Manaan." Kaleb grumbled. "Bastila, can you please talk to him? I don't think I can do it without being arrested."

She shook her head. "Unfortunately, you're probably right, but you'll have to talk to him because you actually know what happened."

He sighed as he walked up to the diplomat.

"You've returned safely!" Roland exclaimed. "I was beginning to fear that you too might have been lost. Did you find out what happened down there at the facility?"

"_Your _construction woke something up." He told him in an accusatory tone.

"Something was down there?" The man asked with genuine shock. "Living in the Rift by the kolto?"

"A gigantic firaxan shark that drove all the Selkath down there insane."

"That's…horrible. The entire operation wasted by a disaster we could never in a thousand years have foreseen."

"Yeah, well, that's what you get when you mess with things that you're not supposed to."

"What has happened to the facility itself? Were there any survivors?"

"A couple of scientists did; Kono Nolan and Sami."

"Well, that is good to know. Good to know indeed, but…what has happened to the facility itself? Was it damaged in any way?"

Kaleb was disgusted with the fact that he was more concerned about his machine than people lives, so he took joy from what he was about to say.

"The harvester machine was destroyed by me so that one, the kolto wouldn't be toxic from one of the poisons a scientist gave me, and two, so the monster firaxa would let stop sending its babies to kill people."

"No! That is terrible. Not only will that set our work back by years, but" Roland Wann sighed. "It may even cost us the war." He looked at the young man with evident irritability. "While I am glad that you were able to solve our problems, the cost may have ended up being much too high. But…you have done your job and helped us in our time of need, and for that I thank you."

"I don't need your thanks because I didn't do it for you, but for those people you abandoned down there and the Star Map."

The man cleared his throat. "Speaking of, did you find your map?"

"Yes. Yay us." Kaleb stated dryly, trying to end this conversation faster.

"As you can see, by helping us you helped yourself." The diplomat replied, with an air of smugness.

"I helped myself by helping you? How do you-"

Bastila put a hand on his shoulder. "What he is trying to say is thank you for all the things you have provided us with and it was our pleasure to help."

Roland nodded. "Yes, perhaps we can work together again in the future."

Jolee brushed past the man. "Well now that this thing is done, I'm gonna go talk to Sunry. If anyone needs me, please hesitate to ask."

Kaleb scoffed as he left too, but Bastila followed him.

"Why must you always have the last word?"

He smiled. "You really wanna know?"

"That would be the reason for me asking, wouldn't it?"

He took a left and went into the computer room. "Get ready for it now…because I can." He gasped as he started to access the main computer.

"Cute." Bastila told him cynically, but then looked around. "Why are we in their computer room?"

"Well, I'm doing a little research for the Sunry case so I can get it over with."

"But why here?"

"Some man I met after I left the hotel told me that I should check out the Republic embassy closer so I'm taking a better look." Kaleb told her as he used a spike to get to their personal files.

They were hardly protected, so he got past the security defenses easily enough.

"Who was this man?"

"I have no idea, but he sounded like he knew the truth about the case and I know Sunry definitely isn't going to tell me the whole truth because he's lied to me once already."

"About?"

"His relationship with Elassa; he was having an affair with her. He pretty much traded Elora in for a pretty face…here we go. Bastila, could you make sure that nobody comes in here while I'm doing this?"

She nodded and stood guard at the entrance.

The large computer beeped in acceptance.

_DOWNLOADING SUNRY INCIDENT ARCHIVE…SUCCESS._

The screen flickered to a black and white fish-eyed view of one of the hotel rooms. An attractive woman with long black hair, who was clearly Elassa, opened the door and entered the room with Sunry close behind. The woman had a smile on her face as she walked further inside the room and went over to the dresser. There was frustratingly no sound, so Kaleb didn't know what was going on beside that old man was closing the door. As the young Sith woman was still scrounging around for whatever it was that she was looking for, Sunry carefully pulled out a standard Republic blaster with special mods and shot her in the back. Elassa's mouth opened in what, Kaleb inferred, a scream of pain, but the hurt in her eyes from his betrayal was what really got to him. Sunry had his blaster positioned point blank at her face, ready to defend himself if need be, but all she did was gasp the word "Why?" She fell to the ground instantly after her comment and he ran out of the room. The archive stopped abruptly after his exit and frizzled into static.

Kaleb's eyes narrowed as anger and sadness rose up in him from the scene, but he couldn't dwell on it for to long for the risk of being caught. He quickly grabbed Bastila's arm as he walked out of the base.

As soon as they were far enough from the Republic Embassy that no one would hear what they were talking about, he sighed heavily as he let go of her.

"Kaleb, what's wrong?"

"I just…I don't know what to do, Bastila."

She waited, giving him time to elaborate, but he didn't respond.

"Is this about what you saw on that computer?"

He nodded solemnly. "I knew it…I knew that he killed her from the beginning and accepted it easily, but…Elora…"

"Wait. Sunry killed the Sith woman?"

"In cold blood... He shot her while she was turned around and the Republic tried to hide it."

"Tried to hide what?" She asked confused.

"The recording from the camera in the hotel room that caught Sunry in the act." Kaleb explained. "But that's not what matters…this recording on my datapad…he was lying straight to my face the whole time. He said…he said he loved her, Bastila."

"Elora?"

"No, Elassa…he said that he would never kill her and yet, he did it so easily." He looked at her face; his eyes pleading. "Could you…come with me? I need to talk with Sunry about this."

She didn't quite know why he was taking it so personally, but could see and feel the conflict on his face so she nodded.

"Of course."

He smiled slightly and the two of them made there way to East Central.

------------------------------------------

As Kaleb and Bastila entered the prison facility, they saw Jolee conversing with Sunry. It must have been particularly amusing because both of them were chuckling until the young man cleared his throat.

"Sorry to interrupt your fun, old man, but I need to talk to your friend." He announced gravely.

Jolee caught his tone and gave him a questioning look. "What's the matter, kid? You hit a snag in the case?"

"You could say that." He answered, but then turned his attention to Sunry; glaring daggers. "I'll admit, you had a pretty good alibi, but in the end the truth always has a way of coming out, doesn't it?"

The elderly man's face wrinkled in artificial confusion. "What are you talking-"

"No." Kaleb commanded, cutting off his sentence. "I don't need to hear anymore of your lies. I knew that you were guilty, but now I have proof."

"Kid, what are you saying? You're supposed to proving him innocent, not the other way around."

"Even I can't help him, Jolee. I found a recording from the Republic Embassy."

"Recording? What recording?"

"Why don't you ask your _friend_?"

Jolee turned to the prisoner. "Sunry?"

He sighed deeply, knowing that he couldn't deny the accusations any longer. "So, the truth is out. I never meant to kill her, you know. When I found out that she was a Sith spy using me to gain information, something inside me just…snapped."

"Well, maybe something inside of me should just _snap _too since you've been doing the same thing to me." The young man told him through gritted teeth.

Bastila wrapped her hand around his arm in an attempt to calm him down. "Kaleb, you mustn't be so quick to anger."

"I think I'm pretty damn composed at the moment." He told her, his eyes never moving away from Sunry's. "I haven't even attempted to strangle him or, I don't know, shoot _him_ in the back with a blaster."

"That's not helping and you know it." She told him, but Sunry shook his head.

"No, he's right. Elassa didn't know that I had found out, so I waited until she was caught off-guard and then I…I killed her. A simple matter, really." He told them coldly. "But once I realized what I'd done, I…I panicked. I contacted those spies from the Republic to help me, they found the illegal monitoring device that the Sith had planted in the room, altered its recording to hide my part in it, and cleared up the evidence. I figured that was the end of it."

"But it wasn't, was it?" Kaleb asked fiercely. "You're getting exactly what a cold blooded killer deserves!"

"It's easy for you to judge me-but you weren't there!"

"And you shouldn't have been there at all! If you weren't cheating on Elora and had been faithful, none of this would have happened!"

Sunry looked away. "You don't know what it like, realizing what I'd done. But it…it doesn't matter anyway."

"Of course you would say something as heartless as that. I mean yesterday, you told me that you loved Elassa too much to kill her, but what do you know? It's another lie!"

Jolee raised his hand calmly to stop the young man's comments, but you could see that he couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"How did the Sith find out?"

"They must have been spying on me and Elassa, trying to make sure she wasn't a double agent. They must have seen the Republic spies getting rid of all of the evidence, so they planted some of their own. Elassa must have stolen that Hero's Cross from me long ago and given it to her Sith masters, like some kind of trophy."

"You didn't notice that it was gone?" Jolee asked him.

"I'd just thought I had misplaced it, but when the Cross turned up on her body, I knew the Sith had put it there." Sunry sighed. "So, now that you know the whole story, what are you going to do?" He asked his Arbiter.

Kaleb knew what he wanted to do; knew that the man would just get what was coming to him. He deserved it all the more for breaking the heart of someone who truly loved him, but…his wife.

"I don't even know what the right thing to do is anymore." He answered truthfully. "Or what to do with you."

"You think I'm some kind of monster, don't you?" The old man asked, his voice rising with anger. "All I did was kill a Sith! How many Sith have you killed? Dozens? Hundreds? Thousands?"

"That's different Sunry and you know it." Jolee answered him. "We don't kill them in cold blood while they sleep."

"I don't see how the two circumstances are any different. She was a spy! She was using me to get info so Malak's army could destroy the Republic! She deserved to die!"

"No, you deserve to die!" Kaleb spat at his pure audacity. "Even if she was a Sith spy, she was still your lover!"

"If I confess, I'm looking at twenty years in prison!" Sunry spat back. "And the Ahto City officials might even place kolto sanctions on the Republic Embassy. Without kolto how can we treat the injuries to our soldiers on the front lines?"

"And these consequences will be on your head! These excuses that you are making will all happen because of your sheer stupidity and incompetence! Now, before you disgrace yourself any further, own up and confess to your crimes!"

"No. I can't do that and put the Republic's supply of kolto in danger. No, I won't! Now look," He propositioned. "I may have done something stupid and it may only be worse from my standing by it, but I will not confess. If you turn me in, the Republic will likely lose its kolto export privileges and then we'll lose the war for sure. Are you going to send all those thousands, millions-like on Taris-to their deaths, just for your sense of _'justice'_?"

Kaleb's eyes opened drastically when he heard this. If he turned Sunry in, all those people would die from untreatable injuries. But this was that man's fault in the first place! He should be the one who took all the blame, not him. This shouldn't have to be his grievance because he didn't deserve it!

The young man's eyes narrowed as he walked over to the Selkath warden. "I want to set Sunry's trial for tomorrow."

_**/Are you sure, human? Once the date of a trial is set, there can be no altering it./**_

"I couldn't be more positive."

_**/Very well, human. We will alert you when the judges are ready for your case./**_

He turned to back to the prisoner. "I might not know what I'm gonna do for you right now, but I'll sure as hell gonna figure it out by tomorrow."

The war hero looked at him like he was demented, but Kaleb stormed out the area before he could dispute his decision. Bastila's eyebrows slanted with concern and she went after him.

"Sunry!" The old Jedi called out sharply. "This is wrong. I am a Jedi…what is it that you expect me to do to defend your actions?"

"You do whatever you have to, Jolee. I know what I did, but I also know what's at stake here."

"Sunry-"

"No-I'll rot in here if I have to, but I won't betray the Republic. Do what you have to, but know what the consequences will be." The man turned away from the Jedi to show that the conversation was over.

--------------------------------

Bastila saw Kaleb sitting on a bench with his eyes closed and walked over to him without saying a word.

His eyes opened as soon as she sat down next to him. "I don't think I can do it…" He trailed as he looked up at her face. "Am I a failure because of that? The leader is always automatically supposed to know what the best thing to do is, right?"

She shook her head. "Don't be silly; you're not a failure because you can't decide what to do for a challenging problem. I would actually be scared if you could come up with a solution so quickly. It's better for you to not have an answer and to think then to have an answer with no thought at all."

"But who am I to decide the fates of so many? Yes, if I turn Sunry in for his crime, justice will have been served; but…what do I know about justice? Even if I hate it with a passion, Sunry is right. I mean, she was a sith and basically killing sith is our job; so what's the problem? Just how was killing Elassa any different from the sith we've killed?"

"It's different because they were trying to kill us and we only defended ourselves. What he did was murder."

"But the end result is always the same; somebody always ends up dying."

Bastila sighed sadly. "It can't be helped. As much as I would prefer for no one to die either, it is the path that the Sith have chosen. All we can do is try to end all this needless destruction and find a better way."

He massaged his forehead. "If you think about it, there never is a right answer. There'll always be one person who'll disagree with what you did."

"Kaleb, could I ask you something?"

He dropped his hand and looked at her. "Sure."

"Is the reason that you dislike Sunry because he…reminds you of your dad?"

"So, you've figured it out, huh?" The young man sighed. "I'm trying not to be biased, but…looking at Elora and Sunry…it's like déjà vu they resemble my parents so much. But this time…I'm not too weak to enforce what's right; I can make sure that he gets just what he deserves."

"To which?"

He was confused. "Huh?"

"As much as he may resemble your dad, he isn't Kaleb. I don't want you to send Sunry to jail because you think it will make you feel better about what happened to your mother in the long run."

"Yeah…" Kaleb shrugged as he got up and stretched. "Well, I don't have to worry about that until tomorrow, but for now…" A devious smirk set on his lips. "I think that it's time for Chef Kaleb to teach an aspiring pupil how to cook."

She rolled her eyes. "Aspiring" isn't particularly the word that I would use."

He sniggered. "Well, I'm sure that I'll have you excited enough by the time we get back to the Embassy."

Bastila let out an amused scoff as she rose from the bench also. "Seriously, where do you get these lines? Do you have some kind of datapad filled with them and you use me to test them out?"

"I'm insulted!" He exclaimed dramatically as the made their way to the Central Courtyard. "For you to _degrade_ my _charm_ to some datapad writings, _it's_…_it's_…kinda funny if you think about it-good job."

She chuckled. "Where are you taking me?"

"_Well_, first, I'm gonna go to the ship to get out of these wet clothes and so you can freshen up too." He looked up at the cloudy sky. "It also looks like it's gonna rain, so I want to get an umbrella; then we're gonna get some food and supplies from the ACVPS."

"ACVPS?"

"Remember, that's the acronym I made up for the store that had foreign foods and stuff. It should have all the stuff I need for our cooking lesson/dinner. After I get the stuff, we can head back to the Embassy and use one of their many kitchens. I'm sure that all of them are better than the ones we have on the Hawk."

"Wow, you have this all planned out, don't you?" Bastila asked with a smile as the two walked down the long walkway to where their ship was docked.

Kaleb grinned back. "But of course. It always pays to be prepared."

"Considering that it's you saying it, I don't know if I should be happy or terrified." She replied as she walked up the loading ramp.

He followed her up. "I don't know…maybe you should be both; it'll make the night that much more fun."

The Jedi just shook her head as she made her way to her room.

"I guess nobody's here." The young man commented as he hurried to his room and tried to find some clothes that would be casual, yet elegant.

He peeled off his shirt and kicked off his boots and pants. "Let's see here…"

Kaleb looked through one of the metallic dressers and found a golden yellow polo with a hunter green strip running through the middle of it, a chocolate leather jacket, and took some loose dark olive pants.

He also grabbed a coffee colored wool cap to top the whole outfit off. "_Gotta coordinate_."

He then made sure to change his wet underwear first before putting the articles of clothing on and then went to the bathroom to brush his teeth.

"It may not be an official date," The young man said to himself as he applied the paste to his toothbrush's bristles. "But nobody said that a cooking lesson couldn't be any less romantic. Let's just hope that the way to a girl's heart is through her stomach too. "

He had decided that this never-ending game that the two of them were playing with each other had to stop. There was no way that he could keep going through these tortures when he knew what he felt for her and just how potent it was; when he was so sure that she felt the same way for him. There had to be something there since she almost kissed him down on that station. At that moment, her eyes were the ones who made promises and told him things that he thought he would never hear from her…things that he knew they would never say again if he didn't confront her about it.

Kaleb spit, washed the residue from his mouth, and wiped his mouth with his towel. He took a deep breath when he glanced at his reflection in the mirror, but quickly flicked the light off, grabbed an umbrella, and jogged to the front of the ship to get the food.

As he came closer to the stand, the Selkath he had talked to before acknowledged him.

**_/Greetings once again, human. I welcome you once again to the Ahto City Visitor's Provisional Stand./ _**

"Thanks. I actually have some things that I need this time instead of just some questions for you and I gotta warn ya, it's a lot of stuff. You might want to write this down."

**_/I am sure that I will be most capable of fulfilling your needs. I have been trained to take in large orders without a need for writing them down./ _**

"_Alright_; I want 12 thin medallions of Dewback meat, a bottle of Alderaanian ale, two medium length strips of dough, a package of parmesan and cheddar space cheese the latter shredded, oil, ¼ cup of honey, 1 cup of apple juice, ¼ teaspoon of cinnamon, six tea bags, 1 ½ of rootleaf, an onion, cup of sour cream, salt and pepper, 8 ounces of noodles, butter and margarine, one teaspoon of chopped parsley, 1 mint leaf, a pint of strawberries and raspberry sauce, pack of sugar, 2 medium-sized chocolate shells, can of whipped cream, uh…four stalks of celery, a sliced apple, orange Montra fruit, and Jingloo melon, a little bag of strackleberry nuts, lemon juice, and one big lettuce leaf."

The Selkath looked at him expectantly and Kaleb laughed.

"That's it, I promise."

He turned around and started opening bins. **_/It will take only a moment to gather what you require./_**

"Sure." The young man replied and he let his eyes droop as he waited.

"Long time no see." A voice directed at him, and Kaleb looked up to see that it was Carth.

An apologetic look spread across the younger man's face, but the pilot stopped him before he could talk.

"It's ok; I know that you only did those things because you were frustrated. This mission has put a lot of people on a short fuse and, considering the visions you were having and the love problems, you didn't have any string left and finally blew up."

Kaleb smiled. "That's a really…nice way of explaining what I did. I was frustrated," He scoffed. "I still am, but I didn't have to be a complete asshole about the situation."

"Hey, let's just act like it never happened." Carth looked at the Selkath piling bags on a counter. "So what, did you just buy this store?"

He chuckled. "Actually, no, but I bet I've gotten pretty close. This is all food that I need for the cooking lesson I'm gonna give Bastila."

"Cooking lesson, huh?" The older man asked with a smirk. "I bet that's gonna be fun."

"Well…let's just say that I'm hoping that it goes in my favor." He answered while he paid the Selkath merchant and grabbed his three bags.

Carth nodded. "So, you're gonna to tell her."

"Oh? I'm all ears." Bastila replied as she walked towards them with a quizzical smile on her face.

The young man's eyes widened when he saw his bond-mate, now dressed in her russet leather and tan dueling outfit, but the pilot cleared his throat.

"I'm just gonna be on my way; gotta get something from the ship." Carth left the two alone, but gave Kaleb a thumbs-up and mouthed the words 'good luck' on his way.

"Uh…" The young man trailed, trying not to sound nervous. "We were just talking about the cooking lesson I'm gonna give you and what we're going to cook. He asked if…I was going to tell you and I was going to say no because it's a surprise."

She looked at the bags that he was carrying and gasped. "T-that's…tonight?" She mocked. "But I haven't gotten a note from the medic. Whine, whine, etcetera."

"Ha, ha, tee hee." He commented dryly. "Who woulda thought that you had a sense of humor?"

"Don't be mad at me because I'm not going to come up with pathetic excuses like you did."

"They weren't pathetic. It took me exactly five seconds to think those bastards up, so I think they should at least be upgraded to satisfactory."

"Ok, I won't give satisfactory excuses all the way to the Embassy. How's that?"

"Much better; thank you." He smirked as he looked her up and down. "So, you decided to impress me with the change of clothes, huh? _Way_ better than those stuffy jedi robes."

She scoffed. "First, no and second, look whose talking."

He looked down at what he was wearing. "What, this old thing? Nah, I just threw this on so I could get out of my wet clothes; nothing special really." He added, lying because he didn't want her to know that she actually had the power to make him feel insecure.

Both of them came up to the exit that led to the Central Courtyard and Kaleb chuckled when he saw that it was raining outside.

"You are so lucky to be with a guy that actually knows how to plan ahead." He told her as he opened up the umbrella he brought with him.

"That's one way to put it."

He shook his head as he placed the umbrella over both of them and they resumed their trip. _So very hard to please. _

The young man sighed contently. "Man, I love it when it rains."

"That's different. Most people hate it when it rains."

"Well, then I like that I'm different." He smiled. "It's so gloomy when it happens. Most of the time, the sky is always such a happy blue, but every once in a while, it's like even it can get depressed. I really can't explain, but…the sound that the droplets make. It's so mournful yet relaxing; their little sad song to the world that we can all relate to."

She smiled back at him. "Such an artistic soul. To think that I never thought any more of rain then it being falling water."

"Hey, at the end of the day that's all it really is. I just try to romanticize it up a bit to make it that much more interesting." He looked at the bags that he was holding. "We should hurry up. I don't want the food to get all soggy and inedible."

Bastila nodded and the two of them hurried to the Embassy.

-------------------------------

"Alright!" Kaleb exclaimed happily when he saw the pans in the cabinets. "This Embassy actually has some good equipment."

He took out a medium sized baking sheet, a flambé pan, a small and large bowl, a colander, spatula, a saucepan, and a dish.

The young man set the stuff down in their appropriate places and then cleared his throat as he turned to a sitting Bastila.

"Welcome to Kaleb's cooking class!" He announced in a French accent. "Today we have a special lesson for ze exquisite Miss. Bastila Shan."

She sighed. "I don't know why I thought this would be a normal lesson."

He took the materials out of the bags and spread them out. "We will have ze appetizer of bread knots and fruit strackleberry nut salad, ze main course delicacy of Dewback medallions heightened with Alderaanian ale with rootleaf and noodles parmesan, and then for ze dessert, I have a special surprise."

"We're going to be cooking all of that?"

"Actually…no. _You're_ going to be doing most of the work while I observe and…how you say, laugh." He answered with a grin as he heated an oven to 350 degrees and put some butter in the microwave. "But do not worry; ze hardest part about ze cooking is trying not to eat what you make until all of it is done."

"I'm sure that I can find more challenging things."

Kaleb placed the baking sheet and oil in front of her. "Alright, get up." He ordered in his regular voice and handed her a paper towel. "Your first task is to oil this sheet. Dab a bit in the middle and wipe it around the perimeter of it."

Bastila nodded and got up from her chair. "Sounds simple enough."

"Good. While you do that, I'm gonna go get the butter."

The Jedi poured a small amount of oil in the middle of the sheet and then spread it around the sheet like she was instructed.

She smiled. "That looks pretty good. Maybe this cooking thing isn't as hard as I thought it would be."

The young man came back with the cup of melted butter and a plastic cutting board. "Let's not get too confident now; you haven't done anything special yet."

He set the cup and cutting board down and grabbed the two medium strips of dough. After chopping the pieces in half, he handed two to her.

"Ok, now we're gonna make the loose knots in the bread. I'll go first to show you how to get it right."

Kaleb held the dough at the top, pulled it down to the middle, twisted it around, and pulled it gently through the loop to make a perfect slightly loose knot in the middle.

"There, you go." He laid the strip down on the sheet. "A breadstick ready to be baked." He grabbed the paper towel, dipped a corner in the cup of butter, and started to brush the dough. "Then you get some butter on the paper towel and wipe the dough with it, like so." After he was done with that, he smiled at her. "You think you can handle that?"

Bastila scoffed. "Of course; how hard is it to tie a knot?"

The young man shrugged. "Ok, since you're so good at this, you can finish tying all of the other pieces of dough while I start cooking the noodles."

He left to get a pot and she picked up one of the small strips of dough. The young woman held it, looped the end, and put it through, but her knot came up on the top instead of the middle. She groaned softly as she got another strip and tried again, but this time her knot was at the bottom of the dough.

Kaleb snickered, but desisted when he saw her give him a dirty look.

He started to whistle as he quickly looked back at the pot. "_Just cooking some noodles_." He sung and she rolled her eyes as she turned back to what she was doing.

_Ok, _The Jedi thought to herself. _I just need to do the same exact thing that he did. _

She held the strip at the top, pulled the bottom to the middle, carefully twisted it into a loop, and then pulled it through.

The young man burst into laughter when he peeked over to see what she had created. "How did you turn the whole strip into a ball? That's horrible!" He told her and laughed again.

She glared at him. "Well, maybe if I had a better teacher, this wouldn't have happened."

"I thought that it wasn't hard to tie a knot?"

"It isn't!" She exclaimed indignantly, but lowered her gaze. "It's just…this dumb knot isn't cooperating with what I want it to do."

"_Awww_, was the naughty knot mean to Bastila?" Kaleb asked in a babyish voice. "I'll give it a spanking, yes I will!"

She just nodded with a raised eyebrow, deciding not to give him the satisfaction of a smile. "How about we cut the spanking and you just help me?"

He smirked. "I don't know; can I help you? Are you even helpable?" His smirk grew as he walked over to her. "I actually like the whole ball thing. Come on, I'll race you for it."

A grin crept across her face, besides her intentions. "Why not? If you want to lose to me again, be my guest."

"First of all, I didn't lose because you cheated and second, even though the knots aren't in the middle these are still the breadsticks that you've made. We're gonna bake them, but…" He trailed and snatched the dough ball out of her hand. "We can't have the best one missing in action."

She tried to grab it back from him, but he just held it over her head.

"Give it back!"

"Nope; this is gonna be cooked."

She kept reaching for it and he grinned widely.

"_Oh yeah_!" He shouted loudly. "She's totally trying to grab _my ball_!"

Bastila gave him an enraged glare, but he couldn't miss the deep blush developing on her face also.

Kaleb laughed as he grabbed the baking sheet while she was caught off-guard and placed it into the pre-heated oven.

"Those should be done in about 15 minutes." The young man faced her, still donning his grin. "Yeah, it was a low blow, but man, was it _funny as hell_!" He saw that she was glaring at him still and shrugged. "I guess I'm just gonna have to wow you with my culinary skills for you to speak to me again, huh?"

She still didn't reply as she looked away from him.

"You know you wanna see 'em." He told her with a wink and turned the burner off over the pot off noodles. "Those are done; next."

Kaleb placed the Dewback medallions in line on a plate and took out the block of Parmesan cheese. He carefully grated a little bit of the cheese on each of the thin circles and once he made that each one had the same amount, he put the grater down and handed the colander to Bastila.

"You didn't think that you were just gonna watch me for the rest of the night, did you? Oh no, you are gonna cook; whether you talk or not. I'm just doing this because it requires experience and I don't want you getting hurt."

She took the colander from him. "What's this for?"

He chuckled. "Well, it couldn't be a pot because it has holes in it, so…maybe it's used for draining things! Like the noodles! _Whoa_!"

The Jedi rolled her eyes. "I didn't think that sarcasm was required when you cooked."

"It's not, but that's what makes mine's _special_. Sarcasm gives it that it home cooked taste." The young man replied as he lit a burner to a moderate heat and placed the flambé pan on top of it. "And, if you actually do the task I've given you fast enough, maybe you'll catch the little show that I'm about to perform."

She couldn't deny that she was interested in seeing him cook, so she started to do as he asked.

"So, just what kind of show is this gonna be?"

"Oh, you know the usual, 'do something cool so that you find me that much sexier if that's even possible' kind of show." The young man answered with a smirk as he placed cut up pieces of butter around the pan.

Bastila scoffed while placed the drained noodles in a bowl. "You're just content with your vain status, aren't you?"

Kaleb laughed. "I'm not vain, I'm only confident in myself."

"Overly-confident would be more accurate."

"Hey, I don't see any problem with that." He replied as he grabbed the saucepan and put it on another burner. "I know what I can do and I do it to the best of my ability.

The young man put about an inch of water in it and walked back over to the counter and took out the rootleaf and onion.

"Another lesson in cooking, you have to learn to multitask or nothing will ever get done. Right now, I know that the butter in my first pan is pretty much melted, so I'm gonna put the meat in there. While I'm doing that though, the water in my other pan will be coming to a boil, but I also have to be worry about those noodles you have. I don't want all of this to be done and then the noodles are cold and nasty, so a lot of it has to do with time management too." He grinned when he saw the surprised look on her face. "Yup, it's not all just put something in a pot and letting it sit; you gotta take care of everything. Oh, speaking of, could you put some margarine in a cup and put it in the microwave?"

She nodded and went over to get it. "I never knew that it took so much just to prepare food. I can only imagine what restaurant cooks go through."

Kaleb sautéed the Dewback medallions so he could give them a chance to brown slightly on the sides. "Yeah, it's a lot of work, but it keeps your senses sharp and it's also that much more gratifying when you eat it."

The young man went back over to the corner, started to cut the rootleaf into bite-sized pieces, placed them into the now boiling saucepan, and placed a lid over it.

"Ok, it's gonna take about…six minutes for those to get tender so…" He trailed as he opened the oven to take out the golden brown breadsticks and ball.

Bastila smiled as their aroma filled the room. "They smell wonderful."

"And you thought they were gonna be failures." He teased as he placed the sheet in an open space on the counter to cool down and then pulled out a chair. "For this achievement, I think you've earned the right to take a break for the moment and watch the show."

The Jedi chuckled. "Well, as long as I meet up with your standards."

She sat down in the chair and he picked up the spatula, the bottle of lemon juice, and a fresh napkin on his way pack to the flambé pan.

He flipped all of the medallions over and grinned when he saw all of them were perfectly light brown on both sides and that the cheese on them looked great.

"Hold all applause until the end, please." He announced to her while he wet the napkin with lemon juice and squeezed it over each of the meats. "Because the really cool part is coming up. Don't try this at home kids…do at somebody's house that you don't like instead."

Kaleb grabbed the bottle of ale and poured a moderate amount of it in the pan. Then grabbed some long matches, lighted them, and placed it into the mixture. Bastila's eyes widened in shock and pure astonishment as a flame sprung up with a loud whoosh and the young man threw the used match aside to pick up the flambé pan and wave it over the burner. He didn't even have to see her face to know that she was impressed.

"Told you it was the coolest part." Kaleb said as he used the spatula to flip the Dewback medallions one last time. "The first time I tried that though, I almost burned my eyebrows off."

He placed the pan back down and grabbed a little emergency use fire extinguisher and sprayed it at the fire; making sure that the short burst didn't touch the food. As the flames simmered down, he grabbed two plates and placed them on the table. He then obtained the flambé pan, placed six medallions on each of the plates, and then grabbed some parsley to garnish over the cheese on each of them.

Kaleb put his index finger and thumb together and kissed them before he held his hand out. "Thank you, thank you! I'm here all night!"

Bastila shook her head, but still clapped for him. "Sure, I'll give you some praise. That was very impressive."

He smirked. "It was, wasn't it? You can expect a lot more of that coming soon."

The young man walked back over to the saucepan and lifted the cover. A billow of steam came up from it, but when it cleared away, he saw that the pieces of rootleaf were ready to be drained. He poured the contents into the colander over the sink and then placed the rootleaf into a bowl.

Kaleb but the pan back on the burner, opened the microwave and took out the cup of melted margarine, and then dispensed it into the heated saucepan.

"What are you making right now?" The young woman asked him as she watched him move back and forth.

"Hmm…I was about to cut this onion, but I think I should teach you how to cut things while I'm at it. It's a very valuable skill since almost everything needs to be cut when you're cooking."

She got up from her chair and he handed her a knife as he placed the onion on the plastic cutting board.

"The trick with an onion is to peel it with out getting the aroma near your face, so you won't cry. It can sting your eyes really badly if you get too close to it." He peeled the onion for her and placed a piece of it on the board. "Now, cut this vertically and than horizontally so you'll make little squares."

She cut out a thin strip and then cut it across like he instructed, but inhaled sharply as the knife clattered on the counter.

"_Ow_; cut my finger, cut my finger!" She whined as she waved her wounded finger through the air.

He tsked as he took her slightly bleeding finger from her and healed it. "Patience has to be a virtue when you're cooking or, as you can see, its not gonna go too good. Calm down and slowly cut the onion; concentrate on what you're doing."

The Jedi rolled her eyes with a little smile. "Yes sir; I wouldn't want to get in trouble with the onion patrol."

The young man chuckled. "Excuse me ma'm, but I take my job very seriously. You disrespect the onion; you're disrespecting me."

"Is that so?"

"Oh yeah, we go way back. Ever since I picked it up from that Selkath, we've been the best of friends. Actually…it's a girl onion so you might wanna watch out. Things are getting pretty hot and heavy between us."

"Oh my, I guess the breadsticks rumors were true."

"Yup. Don't tell anyone, especially not those noodles-the gossiping bastards, but I'm even thinking about…" He looked around suspiciously. "_Getting her an onion ring._"

Both of them laughed at his joke.

"That had to be the _corniest_ thing I've ever heard."

"But it made you laugh, and at the end of the day, that's all jokes can hope for. Let them dream Bastila, _let them dream_."

"Just tell me if I cut your girlfriend right this time."

"Yeah…that's really good for only your second try. Man, it took me a whole day to get the whole cutting thing right."

Bastila grinned. "I guess girls just learn quicker."

"Well, that's just not nice."

"I'm sorry, did you take offense?"

"How couldn't I? You just demoted every boy in the galaxy by 15 points from what you said; including me!"

"Hmm…I never would have known." She shrugged nonchalantly. "Oh well, they'll and you will get over it soon enough."

"There's that overwhelming compassion shinning through again."

"What can I say? I've always excelled at things."

He laughed. "I have no doubt; you look like a real bookworm."

"Now why am I taking that as an insult?"

"I have no idea. I mean, you've got to be the cutest geek I've ever seen."

She scoffed, but couldn't help grinning. "I am not a geek!"

"Oh come on, one of the first things you did back on Dantooine was give me a pop quiz." He said as picked up the bowls holding the noodles and rootleaf.

"Just embrace your geekdom."

"That's not even a word."

"See, only a geek would take the time to analyze that." The young man concluded as he dropped the contents of the bowl into the margarine in the saucepan.

"And what kind of logic or, lack thereof, is that?"

"Why don't you tell me? You're the geek, geek." Kaleb grinned. "Quick-what's the square root of pie?"

"I seriously will never understand you." She told him as she brought the cut-up onions over to him.

He took it from her and dumped it in the pan. "I think your problem is that you understand me too much; I actually feel pretty bad for you."

Their eyes met as both of them smiled at each other.

The young man chuckled lightly. "I've just noticed something."

"What's that?"

"Every time two people's eyes meet, whoever they are, it's one of the most intimate experiences you can ever have with that person. It's kinda weird."

Her brow turned down in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"Well...even though talking with a person gets what their brain is processing, the eyes can see into the soul. The person can lie, but I think it's humanely impossible for eyes not to show what you're truly feeling." His gaze lingered on hers for a second longer, but then he broke contact as he went over to the counter to grab the tub of sour cream, the cheddar and parmesan space cheese, and a spoon.

"Hmm…I've never thought of it like that before. I mean, yes, when two people's eyes meet it is personal, but I guess it also depends on who you're looking at."

He stirred all of the ingredients together in the pan and waited for the cheeses to melt. "Yeah…it's kinda scary of how potent our eyes really are. For ones to look at you and make you feel naked, like you couldn't hide anything. Kinda of like being violated; your secrets taken without your permission."

"Have you ever…felt that way?"

Kaleb smiled. "Yeah, I have, but it's more than that. I don't even know if I have the words to describe it." He looked up at her. "Could you do me a favor and put this into that dish I took out and put it in the oven while I make the salad?"

The young woman nodded and took the spoon from him as he walked back to the counter and took out the 4 stalks of celery.

He cut the celery into ¼ inch pieces, put them into a large bowl, and then took out the apple, orange Montra fruit, and Jingloo melon; cutting them up and adding them to the bowl also.

"How long do you want this dish to stay in the oven?" The Jedi directed to him.

"Uh…I think several minutes should be good enough. We just need it to be hot and bubbly." He told her as he opened the bag of strackleberry nuts and poured them in with the fruit. "Do you think you could boil some water without burning down the Embassy?"

She rolled her eyes. "I don't know; are you sure you want to take the risk?"

"Hey, this isn't my place and I would personally love to see the look on Roland's face if this kitchen was destroyed."

"You're horrible."

"Well, I'm not nice." Kaleb took out the lettuce leaf and grabbed a large plate. "I'm also a little sick of conventional salads, so I'm gonna mix it up with this one." The young man laid the leaf on the plate and placed the contents in the bowl on it. "There you go; it's like a mini fruit buffet now."

Bastila picked up a piece of melon, greedily plopped it into her mouth, and just gave a wide close-lipped smile when he scoffed at her.

"Did I say the fruit buffet was open yet?"

"It wa too goo ta resist." She told him with her mouth full.

He laughed, not being able to keep up the feigned stern demeanor. "Do you have any idea how cute you were?"

She swallowed the fruit. "On a scale of one through ten?"

"Try it out."

"Gosh…834?"

"Pretty high opinion of ourselves tonight, huh?"

"It has to be to tolerate you."

"Well, you've been doing a great job of it so far. I have to remember to get you a medal or something. Do you think 'Best at not killing their bond-mate while on a mission to save the entire galaxy from uncountable days of evil and suffering' will be too long?" He asked her as he grabbed an oven mitt and took the dish out.

"Hmm…you might have to paraphrase a bit."

The young man chuckled as he brought the dish over to where the two plates that had the Dewback medallions and placed some of the noodle and rootleaf parmesan on both the plates.

"Yeah, that looks great." He turned around to her. "And I couldn't have done it without my special little helper." He wiped a fake tear from his eye. "Thanks spatula; _you're a lifesaver_."

The woman scoffed in disbelief and threw a slice of apple at him while he laughed.

"For your sake, you better hope that I don't take that as an invitation for a food fight because I got scalding hot ammo right here." Kaleb placed the dish back on the stove. "Ok, only one more thing left to make."

"What's that?"

"Something for you to drink because I know you're not really big on ale. I'm pretty sure that you'll like it." He got the apple juice and poured it in with the boiling water in the pot.

"Really now?"

He smiled and brought over the honey, cinnamon, and six tea bags. "Yeah, really now. It's a very nice tea that even I don't have too much of a problem with." The young man added them into the pot and began to stir it up. "Like I said, you'll like it."

"I guess I'm ultimately going to be the judge of that."

"Of course; I'm just stating facts." He responded as he turned the heat off and let it sit as he went to the sink for some cold water.

He dropped the liquid from the pan into a tall glass of cold water and added ice. "Well, everything's ready, but I'm thinking we should go outside. A dinner this good shouldn't be wasted indoors."

"But it was raining the last time we went out."

"Yeah, but I've got a feeling that it's over now and there's nothing better than going outside right after its rained."

"You're not going to put the food away or clean up?"

The young man headed over to a sink, put the spatula that he held in his hand in it, and then gave her a big smile.

"Done!"

She scoffed. "That had to be the most lackadaisical thing I've ever seen."

"I am a master of the art and besides, I'm on relaxation mode at the moment. Again, this isn't my place and the least this Embassy can do is clean up after us with how much we've helped them out. Besides, the rest of the crew might want to eat something that's good and free for dinner."

She shook her head. "Whatever, you're still lazy."

"Yup! I'm a chef; my job is to cook, nothing else." He grabbed their plates and headed for the exit. "I gotta go back to the room real quick, but don't forget to grab your drink and the salad on the way out and please try to restrain yourself until we get outside."

The Jedi threw another piece of fruit at his neck and he just laughed again.

---------------------------------------

A rush of the chilly air hit Kaleb as he left the Republic Embassy's exit and he was suddenly glad that he had brought his hoodie for Bastila. He slipped his guitar around his back and immediately noticed that the streets were all but bare besides a few security droids, but smiled when he saw her sitting on a bench staring at the blackened sky.

"I hope I didn't make you wait too long." He stated as he walked up to her.

"Oh no, you're fine. I'm actually glad that I'm finally getting a chance to just sit down and appreciate the night time beauty of this planet."

He smirked as he sat down next to her and saw her shiver slightly, but thought that he would have a little fun with her first before giving her the hoodie.

"It's kinda nippy tonight, huh?"

"Yes, it is a bit chilly." She replied as she crossed her arms in an attempt to preserve heat.

"_Yeah_…I would give you my jacket or cap, but then I'd freeze, _so_…I guess you'll just have to adjust." He sighed contently. "So _very _warm and toasty."

"How can contain all that chivalry?" Bastila asked sarcastically.

"Well…I was gonna turn over a new leaf and give you my hoodie, but if you don't want it…" Kaleb grinned as she tried to snatch it from him, but pulled it away just in time. "Uh-uh; what's the magic words?"

"Give me _my _hoodie before I get out my lightsaber."

He chuckled and gave it to her. "There ya go!"

She graciously took it from him and put it on, but the young man looked up and saw a few thin delicate grey clouds and a multitude of shimmering stars that all twinkled with their own sense of pride.

"Isn't it gorgeous?" The young woman questioned as she joined him in his star gazing.

"Yup…" He trailed in wonder. "The ocean, as if in awe of the view itself, is trying to be calm and is doing its best to use its glassy surface to mirror this…masterpiece; the calm after the storm."

She smiled. "Never cease to amaze."

"What, nature?"

She glanced at him. "No you."

He felt as if there were thousands of butterflies in his stomach from her gaze and he quickly looked back at the night sky.

"I guess…um, we should start eating our food before it gets cold though." He finished as he picked up his plate.

Bastila nodded as she reached for her plate also. "I wouldn't want all your hard work to go to waste."

"Hey, this is your hard work too." Kaleb told her as he bit off a piece of meat. "And let me be the first to say that you've officially passed my cooking class with honors…geek."

She scoffed. "Shut-up."

"Okay…but only because my mouth is stuffed by your breadstick ball!" He exclaimed with a smirk as he picked it up from its dish and put the whole thing in his mouth.

The young man swallowed it and suddenly made gagging sounds as he held his neck with both hands. "Dying…slowly…revenge of the breadstick ball!" He stopped and smiled at her. "No, but really; it was better than edible."

The Jedi just took another bite of her noodles.

"You're not gonna admit that your bread ball was good?"

"No." Bastila stated simply.

"_Come on_!"

"I'm not doing it."

"_Say it_."

"What don't you understand about no?"

"Why can't you just accept it?"

"Because I didn't eat it."

He scoffed. "Well, I did and it was."

"Then, that's your opinion."

He grinned. "It's a scary thought, but I think I've actually found someone else in this galaxy that's as stubborn as me."

"You're right, that is scary." She concluded as she took a sip of her tea. "Oh wow, I guess you did know what you were talking about. This is the best tea that I've ever had."

The young man smiled as he used his fork to play with his noodles, but she frowned.

"Are you alright? You've barely touched your food."

"Yeah…I guess I'm just ready for the surprise dessert." He picked up the bag. "Are you ready for something _sticky_ and _sweet_?" The young man asked seductively.

Bastila scoffed. "You just had to do it, didn't you?"

"Wouldn't be me without it."

She sighed. "Sure, why not?"

"Good, because it would be really awkward if you didn't." Kaleb told her as he pulled out the two chocolate shells and the can of whipped cream.

He filled both up to about half and then placed them on empty plates as he took out the pint of strawberries. Gently placing each of the fruits on top of the whipped cream layer so they wouldn't fall through, he drizzled a zigzag line of raspberry sauce on top of the strawberries and on the plate; adding two mint leaves on the right side of each.

"Pretty snazzy, huh? And you can eat the bowl!" He exclaimed beaming.

She chuckled. "It's truly a wonder."

"A dessert as a special as this one has to be handled in the most delicate of ways." He told her with a sophisticated tone.

He slowly lifted the chocolate shell and quickly stuffed his mouth into it; ravaging the strawberries. Bastila laughed when she saw all the whipped cream he had gathered around his mouth and Kaleb smiled at her.

"Is there anything on my face?"

"What isn't on your face is a better question." She told him and laughed again from how absolutely silly he looked.

He used the sleeve of his jacket to wipe himself off. "Did I get it all?"

"No, there's a bit more." She leaned forward and wiped a little of the cream that was on his lower jaw with her pointer finger.

The Jedi paused when she noticed how much distance between their faces had shortened and saw Kaleb staring unblinkingly with such intensity, but with a sense of tenderness burning in his light eyes also. He leaned forward, but not towards her face, and instead lowered his mouth down to the finger she had used to wipe him and sucked the whipped cream off; triggering her to color fiercely as her breath was caught in her throat. He slowly trailed his lips back up her finger, making sure to bump his tongue against it, and gently bit against her nail before he let go.

"_Delicious_…" The young man said huskily as he licked his lips and, her breath suddenly coming back to her, Bastila exhaled hoarsely.

_What just happened here? _Was the first sensible thing that popped into her head after the fog in her mind cleared.

"Kaleb-"

"I just did something without caring about the consequences…something that I couldn't-no can't deny any longer."

"Please don't…"

Kaleb shook his head. "No, it's too late for lying." He brought his ebony guitar over his back and rested it on his thighs. "I've always thought of life as a symphony and we're the dancers; every single one dancing to their own beat, until they find another whose heart is on the same perfect melody. Bastila…I want you to hear how my heart serenades you and listen to the one that I know yours is trying to get out."

She was speechless as he closed his eyes and began to strum the instrument to let out a sound that resembled a Latin love song; his voice starting out low.

"_There are other dancers all around, but I see only you; you make my life have sound._

_**I can hear music play**, _He sung in a slightly higher pitch, but went back to the regular one after that. _Before the band can start or the singer has say. _

_You have those moves that **mesmerize **and **hypnotize**, **without you I'd surely die**._

_What** can I do**? **You stole my essence away; all I have is for you**." _

The young man stopped singing and let the music talk for him as he went fully instrumental.

Bastila felt a deep lump in her throat as she processed what he had sung. It was if every word was killing her softly with their sheer passion; ever pluck of his finger bringing more pain than he could ever imagine. Her heart pounded faster because it was finally hearing what it had hidden for so long; the song that opened it and was proclaiming what it felt aloud. The Jedi in her silently prayed that he would stop this, but of course he kept right on, paying no heeds to her silent pleas as he went into the choruses.

"_Like the sands **on** **Tatooine**, **never going away, you make my heart scream**. And those sands **on a windy day**, you come pick me up and always blow away. _

_**Like the waters on Manaan**, **always surrounding me, you'll never truly be gone**. These waters I was scared of at first, but when you're with me, there could be nothing worse._

_Like the strong trees **on Kashyyyk**, **you make me swoon, no resisting your magic**. And like those endless trees **we saw before**, you'll never be too much, I'll always need you more." _He slowed his strumming down and opened his eyes so she could see the fervor of what he singing. _"**And even on evil Korriban**, **are souls are one, so it's most sacred of lands**. Though I'm forced to not be near you, I won't forget; it'd break my heart in two." _

He copied the same notes he used in the beginning for the conclusion of the song. _"Like the sun warms the clouds, love me sweet, as only you know how. Bring me nearer **and hold me close**, squeeze me tight just to let me know._

_Only you have that **special technique**, **when we dance**, I go weak. **To be close to you everyday**, **all my dreams would come true**, forever…dancing away." _

He saw Bastila cup a hand around her mouth as her eyes watered by the time the song had ended and smiled slightly.

"It wasn't that bad, was it?"

She couldn't answer him; couldn't do anything, but feel every single moment.

There was just so much…pain and need across his face that she automatically remembered the way she felt when she had dove into his emotions while they were meditating. But no, this time it was real…all of this was really happening and it hurt so much more. So much more that she couldn't stand it and did the only thing that she had for a defense against him…she ran; sprinted to the Republic Embassy in a desperate attempt to get away.

-------------------------------------------

Kaleb opened and closed the door that lead into their room as he entered and dropped his guitar on the carpeted floor without a second thought. He wasn't angry or disappointed, but only determined to get out all that he felt and to make her listen, make her understand.

"Bastila, we both need to face this…and me being scared of the result shouldn't delay the result of what could be with us."

The young woman glared at him, unshed tears still brimming in her eyes. "_You're_ the only one, the only man that has been able to make me feel this way and not understand why!" She exclaimed in obvious frustration as she rose from the bed. "With all the training I've received, there should be no reason why it is so hard to control myself when I'm around you or why my lack of restraint is only getting worse instead better! The more I refuse you, the more the need to be with you again and it's so…so _infuriating_!" She redirected her glare at a wall, as if it was the thing that vexed her. "It's more and more often that I find my eyes watching you of their own free will and my mind thinks of you when I clearly command it not to. I almost kissed you back in that underwater station, for Force's sake!"

He couldn't withdraw the small grin that appeared on his face. "Well, you didn't exactly have to force me to comply."

Bastila didn't take his expression lightly. "That's exactly what I mean! Every little thing is going wrong; it isn't supposed to be like this!"

"Then what is everything supposed to be like?"

Her forehead wrinkled in puzzlement as she scoffed. "I don't know! It shouldn't be so hard not to think of you, but a simple matter." She groaned. "I should have Jedi discipline, but every single time I try to call on my teachings to calm myself, they fail me."

"And that's because you can't command you're feelings like that. You're messing with the natural order of things. We're humans Bastila, slaves to our emotions; not the other way around."

It was as if something in what he had said had sunk in as her glare relaxed and turned into an almost hopeless expression. "It's just that…you have such _power_, such _passion_! I do not know if it is the bond between us, but…I am drawn to you."

Kaleb frowned as he couldn't help feeling affronted. "Wait…are you only interested in me because of my command over the force?"

Bastila caught that he had taken offense and shook her head. "The Force is apart of you, as is your power, but that's not what attracted me to you…" She gazed into his honey eyes. "It's…it's much more than that."

He internally sighed from those words and the truth that he felt in them while she continued.

"Maybe it's the bond we share. It, of course, gives us a certain degree of…intimacy." The young woman sighed despairingly. "If I could, I would return to Dantooine. I need to be away from this bond of ours; I need to weaken it. I need to be anywhere but near _you_!"

He knew that she only said that because he was forcing her to conflict with the jedi code, but it still stung. "If you really want to get away from me that badly…you could leave."

She sighed impatiently. "And go where? I am needed here, just as you are. There is nothing that is more important than what we are doing…that's why this needs to be resolved…Kaleb; you're stronger than I am."

The young man was about to object, but she raised a hand to silence him. "There's no point in telling me otherwise; you'll just be wasting your breath. In some ways you make me feel weak, like I am caught up in the wake of our destiny. But at the same time, you make me feel stronger, more alive."

"You must know that I feel the same when I'm around you. I'll admit, it scares me when I know how strong my feelings are for you, but the way you make me feel back…I never want to give that up." He answered, but didn't like the solemn tone she was using, nor that he was feeling walls come back up on her side of the bond.

"I realize now that these…feelings are only a result of the bond we share. The Jedi Council surely realized this; knowing my loyalty to the doctrines of our Order would be tested on this mission." Bastila dropped her eyes from his gaze, knowing that what she really felt they wouldn't let her hide. "By facing and overcoming my feelings for you, I have learned a valuable lesson about control and the dangers of emotion. This is an important step in understanding the Force."

Kaleb saw her mouth moving, but the words that were coming out of it just weren't processing in his head.

"I'm sorry if that isn't what you wanted to hear, but I felt it important for you to know that our…infatuation…was nothing more than the result of our powerful bond.

"So…that's it?" Confusion was the emotion that creeped over him first since he still couldn't understand what she was saying. "You give me that little…speech and it's all over?"

"I'm…afraid so. Although, I suppose I should thank you for all you've done and the lessons you've helped me learn."

Aggravation ripped violently through him next when he actually started to hear what she was saying. "_Thank you_ for the _lessons you've _learned? So, you learn something and then _I_ just get _tossed aside_?"

"You know that I wish it could be otherwise, but this is the way it must be. There are far worse things in the galaxy then-"

"_What_, you rejecting me?" Anger was rapidly taking over and was in no way trying to stop it. "Don't give me that hypocritical piece of _Hutt spawn_ when you run around all day chanting that _idiotic_ jedi chant because it's easier than feeling anything! _No_." He stated, his voice dripping with venom. "You want to take the easy way out and make me into some damn stepping stone to you becoming a master!"

She winced from his harsh words. "Please, don't say that. You make it sound like I was using you!"

"And just why should I believe otherwise?" He glanced away from her as if the very sight of the woman made him sick. "I don't even know why I keep hurting myself for you, but I finally figured out…my heart is the stupid and weak one. Do you even have one of those, Bastila?"

She forced him to look in her eyes so he could see how much she was hurt by this too. "Do you even realize how difficult this is for me?"

The young man scoffed, from her audacity. "Difficult for _you_? Well then how the hell do you think I'm taking it, woman?"

Her eyes narrowed, now starting to feel agitated herself. "Why do you think I came to this decision? I know how hard this is for both of us!"

"_Don't even try to act like you know how I feel_." He replied coldly.

"Don't get mad because _you're_ the one who kept pressing forward and I had to step up and do the right thing!"

"You can't keep running from this all your life!" Kaleb shot back. "Why is it that this _stupid_ jedi order is keeping you from expressing your real feelings? Why can't _we_ have the chance to find happiness in each other?"

She took a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself. "You already know the answer to that, Kaleb. You can only see me as a friend and I the same with you, but you continue to make that complicated when it couldn't be made any clearer."

He laughed, but it was devoid of anything resembling happiness. "You know, you told me the same thing back on Tatooine, but I didn't have the heart to tell you then. _I_ was _too_ concerned, _too worried_ about how your life would be changed from everything you knew and I truly didn't know if I could have competed with that. _I _didn't think that I had the right to force you to give up the jedi because you already had enough pressure on your hands from this mission and _I_ wanted you to come to me willingly, so…_I _put your welfare first and denied what _I_ felt for you. But you now what _I've_ finally found out?" A twisted grin appeared when he asked the question; his gaze overwhelmed with intensity. "_I'm_ more than capable of going head to head with that council or the whole damn order and _I'm gonna fight my ass off _for the chance to be with you because you're worth it…because _I_ deserve to be a _selfish asshole_ that couldn't give _a tach's ass_ about any of that other crap I thought before. Because just a single second with you is worth risking it all. Right now, all I want is you, _Bas_, and I'm going to hold on tight because nothing hurts as bad as when you see that you gave up on something too easily."

She had lost the ability to speak as he moved closer and placed his hands on the side of both of her arms.

"The jedi in you might be affecting your words, but as I said before, you're eyes are just incapable of lying; especially to me. The jedi's saying that we can only be friends, but when I know that the love in your eyes is being turned into something as…_basic _as kindness or pity-I'll have none of it." He said as a quiet rage flashed through his golden eyes.

Hers flickered to the floor, not being able to handle his. "You call it love, but words do not make it true."

"And your words don't make it any falser. All the things that you've admitted you experience when you're around me, isn't that good enough for you?"

"As I said, those were only the results of mere infatuation." The young woman tried to answer in monotone, besides how shaken up she really was inside. "What we 'feel' are only base lusts that we must not give into!"

"Why can't you accept that what we feel for each other is much more than anything lust could offer?"

"Because I am a Jedi, Kaleb!"

"And since when has politics become more important than humanity?" He asked her calmly. "They have put a label on your head, but you are Bastila before anything else and, more importantly, you are the woman I love."

"_Love, love, love_!" She snapped viciously. "That's all I hear you say, but how can you even prove this supposed love to me? _How_ is it made real?"

Kaleb grabbed her wrist and forcibly brought her hand to his heart; both of them being able to feel the rapid beating. "You can't hear what its saying? Can you not feel that it's crying, screaming, and shouting "let me out!" to you? How every beat pangs for only you?"

Bastila tried to pull her hand away, but he just tightened his grip.

"I love you to the point of being overwhelmed…to the point of madness from you invading my dreams and every thought. Your name resounds throughout my soul constantly and I can't help but…_shiver_ from the complete and sheer volume of the passion I feel for you."

"Kaleb, you must face the truth! We cannot blind ourselves with a relationship when Malak has to be stopped, no matter what you think!"

He grazed his hand across her cheek and stared into her beautiful blue-grey eyes longingly. "I don't think, but know that you've changed me with such subtlety; with such unforgettable ways that I don't even want to remember what my life was like before I knew you. And I didn't come to this conclusion with the foolishness of a crush, but with the knowledge that your touch marks my skin and I merely have to close my eyes to effortlessly summon your image."

Before she could say another word to answer him, the young man snaked a hand behind her neck and brought her face up to finally join in a fervent kiss; not being able to hold back any longer. Every single nerve in his body was ablaze as his lips melted into the softness of her innocent ones and he wrapped his hand around her waist to bring her closer so that their bodies were touching. Her mind screamed that she had to get away, had to end this kiss in anyway possible, but her body and couldn't care less about her thoughts as it stayed put; stunned from the amazing pleasure he inflicted on her.

He felt her taut lips relax and the vibrations of a muffled moan on her end, probably done unconsciously, but it only made his desire grow as he deepened the kiss; trying to capture as much of her sweetness as he could before the need for oxygen rose its ugly head. His plans were cut short; however, when he suddenly felt her put her hands on his chest and shove him away roughly. She hadn't fully gained control of her body, but she had anger; anger towards him, the Jedi Code, the Council, and most importantly, herself.

Once he had made sure that he had his footing so he wouldn't fall, he saw the most enraged glare that he had ever witnessed on his bond-mate's face.

"Bastila-"

She slapped him with everything she had before he could finish his sentence. "_How dare _youkiss me? How…" Her eyes began to water as she saw him holding his cheek; eyelids clenched in pain. "…dare you make _me_ feel this? I-I don't…_I don't want to_…" The young woman trailed miserably as she felt ever beat of her once icy heart, but he had melted it and all the mountainous defense mechanisms had been moved. All these emotions that she had been guarding against for almost all her life gushed throughout her as the dam had suddenly been broken.

Bastila was actually scared when she saw his darkened eyes open and he began to saunter towards her.

"That's right…_get it out_. _Hit me again_." He ordered gruffly.

Tears wet her face as she shook her head and started to back up.

"_Oh_, don't stop now; we're finally makin' some progress. What you did was something a normal jedi wouldn't do…it was all you; now wasn't it, Bas?" He asked as he backed her against a corner.

"I-I'm sorr-"

"_No_, I don't want an apology. I want you to slap me again because in those quick seconds I saw the real Bastila. I want that again…_you_ again. To see you let your emotions rule your actions...to know the privileges that every human being is born with."

She closed her eyes, forcing more of the salty tears to come down, but Kaleb gently laid her hand against his reddened cheek.

"You've built a fortress around your heart; you're emotions locked within so they wouldn't be in danger. I know you don't want to feel this hurt…feel this agony, but it's already here, Bas. It's already inside of you." He concluded in a soft voice. "But you have to understand that I couldn't make you feel any of this unless you had it within you to feel in the first place."

The young man laid his head against her chest and heard the thumping of her heart; calling out to his so desperately.

"_Kaleb_…_you_ _know that we have to resist this_." She whispered faintly, giving a valiant fight to keep up her duty as a Jedi. "_And if I have to be the one who's strong enough for the both of us_…_then that's what I'll do_."

"Wanting someone you can never have with a burning love that you can never show in public…such loneliness…such unrequited emotions should not be allowed to exist." He lifted his head. "Maybe I am a fool for believing in our love, but…" He slowly leaned in towards her face. "I would play the fool willingly to be able to feel this way forever…"

Kaleb closed his eyes as he was mere seconds away from her lips, but Bastila brought up her hand to stop him just in time; knowing that she wouldn't be able to survive it. A surge of depression flooded him as he knew that his last chance to win her heart had been shot down. He couldn't even look at her anymore while his soul was slowly being ripped to shreds and his heart bleed as the inches from her face grew further and further away by that aloof hand.

Unexpectedly, as if brought back up from the eternal coldness of death itself, he felt unmistakable warmth that engulfed his being, pressed against his slightly sore cheek. He looked up and saw smoky-blue eyes maddened with unkempt desire; no longer burdened, but filled with something far more…instinctual.

"Please tell me that you understand." He begged with obvious hopefulness.

She nodded, but her glazed eyes were freed from their prison of lust for just a moment while she promised herself that she would never intentionally hurt him again; not when she had been given a second chance. He was no longer who he had been before and neither was she.

"_The Council must never know._" The little bit of Jedi still left in her pleaded to him softly.

Kaleb's happiness was dampened by the fact that she still cared about what the council thought, but that was rapidly torn from his mind when he felt hot flesh touch his lips. He was stunned when his now slowed down brain processed that she was hungrily kissing him with so much need and urgency, but his body was quick on the uptake as it returned it with an equal, if not greater, amount of passion.

The young man pressed his body as close as he could to hers, managing to pin her against the wall and she wrapped her arms around his neck to lower his head down and deepen the kiss that much further. As soon as he felt an opening through her teeth, he let his tongue wander into this uncharted territory for its own expedition and felt the surprise that she was experiencing through their bond, but before long, it turned into a groan of pleasure.

He seriously considered dying just so he wouldn't have to break contact with her lips, but the thought of never being able to kiss her again made him reluctantly let go to take a quick breath.

During his short recovery, Kaleb reached around her neck and undid the clasps that held her hair; it flowing down into its glorious natural silky curls.

"I wish that you wouldn't hide the fact..." He murmured as he undid the necklace he had given her and placed it on the dresser; placing deft kisses along the area of her neck that her collar didn't cover after he finished.

Bastila, her head tilted back, was unaware of the moan that escaped her mouth from him taking time with every indention and crevice of her neck; making a trail of wet kisses toward her earlobe.

"_That you're absolutely stunning_." He whispered, his warm breath tingling the moist areas on her skin and sending shivers down her spine. "But then again…I want no one feasting their eyes on your astounding beauty but me."

His hand ran through her incredibly soft hair as his flickering tongue lavished on the sensitive parts of her ear and sent sharp sparks of electricity through her. Kaleb was about to go back down to her jaw, but she stopped him as she lifted her head and hurriedly threw his leather jacket down to the carpeted floor.

She devoured his lips, still being able to taste the strawberries and whipped cream he had eaten not long before, while her hands rummaged under his shirt; rubbing against all the grooves of his outstandingly toned chest.

Every single place she touched lit him on fire as she slowly; agonizingly dragged the pads of her fingertips over the extremely responsive hairs of his abdomen. Bastila severed the kiss as she reached up to grab the cap off his head and placed it on her own with a sultry grin as Kaleb was awestruck form how that much more tantalizing she was. He knew that the little bit of control that he had was quickly evaporating from the utter sexiness of her actions, but she clutched his polo and pulled his shirt off as she pushed both of them onto the large bed.

The young man's pupils dilated from the position of their bodies as he raised his head to kiss the cleavage of her outfit; one of his hands rubbing her clothed stomach and the other's fingers gliding down her thigh. Her heart rate spiked as she inhaled sharply, engulfed in his invigorating manly scent and enamored with his gentle seduction.

Desire fueling his actions, Kaleb flipped the two of them over so that he was now on top and she gave a breathy chuckle from this aggressiveness that matched her own. He ground his hips into hers as their tongues met in an intricate dance and she felt his arousal rub against her; making her feel something she never experienced before as her lower body starting throbbing uncontrollably. Her hands, seemingly with a mind of their own, immediately unbuttoned his pants and quickly lowered the zipper, but he lifted himself up from her slightly, using a planted hand on the bed for balance.

"Bas…are you sure about this?" He asked; his face concerned, but not able to fully hide his longing.

Yes, he was losing all control, but he would never be so unleashed without thought and would die before forgetting about her feelings.

"I don't want this to happen if you're not ready or if you feel like I'm taking advantage of you."

She met his gaze with a glint of mischief in her eyes; just the sight of him making her weak with strong desire. "Are you so sure that I am not the one taking advantage of you?"

He shook his head, but couldn't help grinning a little. "I'm serious. We can't take back what we're about to do and I don't want this to be something you regr-"

The young woman cemented her lips on his, this time with both their tongues coiling furiously.

"_I could never regret this._" She breathed as she broke the kiss and started nuzzling his neck. "_I'm fully ready to be yours and I want you to completely be mine also_."

His eyes widened in shock from her confirmation and he could feel all of the compassion and love throughout their bond. Bastila leaned up slightly and reached behind herself to unbutton a piece of her leather collar and then untied some loops of string.

Kaleb laughed. "I've gotta admit, I'm too many kinds of ecstatic that you did that because I seriously had no idea how to take the thing off. It was all…jedi-proofed."

"Well…" She smiled as she slipped the top part of her outfit over her shoulders; it crumpling down to her belt to reveal a brown lace bra. "I have a feeling that you won't experience anymore difficulties."

No longer halted by his conscious or her clothes, he began kissing his way down to her chest and slowly trailed his tongue across the crevice between her breasts as he unhooked her bra. She moaned loudly and pressed her fingers into the back of his neck as his warm lips covered her ripe peaks; his tongue and teeth gently teasing her hardened nipple. Her fingertips turned white as her nails dug in harder and he began kneading her breast as he sucked the other nipple raw; wanting to concentrate on each equally and in no rush to stop.

"_Kaleb_…" Bastila moaned breathily as her back arched from the pleasure he was inflicting.

His lips melted into her soft ones again and his fingers fumbled with her belt. It came undone and he broke the kiss to toss her boots to the floor, so he could pull her clothes down all the way.

He followed her creamy skin with his hand down her slender stomach, curvaceous hips, and her firm perfectly crafted legs. The young man's heart felt like it had stopped as his eyes drunk in her barely dressed form; etching every single aspect of it into his memory just in case, by some cruel twist of fate, this was another persuasive dream.

This was the first time she had exposed herself to any man and couldn't help blushing when she felt his heavy gaze, but he shook his head as he arranged slow kisses across her stomach.

"Your body is a gorgeous work of art; never be ashamed of it." He parted his lips around her belly button and blew a raspberry, making her giggle.

Kaleb felt an explosion of deep warmth spread through his chest and drip throughout his body, making him lose control of his senses as he savored the sweet nectar of her mouth once again. Wanting to pleasure her that much more, his fingers traveled beneath her panties and lightly rubbed over the delicate flesh there; while she gasped and shuddered from the pleasurable tingles.

The pads of his fingers brushed against the highly sensitive nub of flesh and she bit her lip hard as her thighs started twitching while he gently grazed under the coarse and curly hair there to lower areas with his tongue.

No longer being able to restrain her groans as waves of pleasure built up in her, she cried out as he slowly entered two fingers into her heat, but he paused to see if she was comfortable. She nodded, sensing his hesitation, and yelped in discomfort with squinting eyes when she felt him continue; feeling as if a vibrosword had been thrust into her as he broke past her hymen. He continued to kiss her and his free hand soothingly massaged her thigh, the thought of him hurting her killing him inside.

The acute pain eventually started to numb away, leaving great pleasure in its stead and the young man felt her insides grasping and clenching his digit. Moans of encouragement spilled out of her mouth as she could hardly contain the satisfaction he was giving her with just his touch and he obliged her by removing her underwear down all the way and sticking his fingers in deeper and harder. The wetness around his hand increased as she convulsed again while her knees buckled. Bastila was dangerously close to hyperventilating as her eyes rolled up in her head and her toes curled up while she reached climax.

Kaleb smiled, with pride from giving the young woman her first orgasm, and she tried to recover her breaths while he began lapping up the remaining juices she exuded eagerly. She surprised even herself as she heard whimpering and he licked his fingers when he was done; treasuring her sweetness and wanting to remember it as long as he possibly could.

He saw her raise herself up to him with a dreamy, yet lustful smile plastered on her face, the young woman deciding that she was going to make him as hot and bothered as she was.

She lay on top of him and ran a painfully slow hand down his lower body; coaxing his erection even further as she packaged the bulge and his breathing accelerated. Her smile grew as she pulled his boots off, tugged his navy pants down, and tossed them aside.

"You won't need those anymore."

He didn't have chance to reply as Bastila easily freed the impressive erect organ from his skintight shorts and a spasm ran through it unexpectedly as he groaned. Electricity surged through him every time her hand went up and down and his groans increased as he closed his eyes and felt ecstasy like no other. She actually was very interested to see his reactions when she sped up her movements or slowed down and wasn't disappointed when she heard a sharp gasp or a moan. The young woman smirked as she began to suddenly move her hand faster and then stop without warning; teasing him relentlessly as he was powerless to do anything.

Kaleb was usually so prideful, smug, and stubborn that she felt a sense of contentment from only her having the ability to make him into a twitchy, groaning mess by nothing more than simple fondling and him being completely under her control while doing so. Bastila might have been new at this, but could tell from his now throbbing member that if she continued on, he would ejaculate and that simply would not do.

She let go of his pulsing penis to let him cool down and moved off of him, having definitely achieved making him both hot and bothered, but he quickly brought his pulse down with several slow breaths and grabbed his knapsack. He took out a condom from one of its pockets and quickly protected himself, while she looked back at him questioningly.

"Just how long have you had that in there?"

He smirked as he laid back on her. "Since Kashyyyk…" The young man trailed as he started laying incessant kisses all over her body and caressing desirable places. "Guess what I said back then was true, huh?"

Kaleb nibbled on her earlobe and whispered alien words that she had never heard before, but that only made her more excited as the sound of the mysterious, sexy comments filled her ear. He thought that he would pay her back for teasing him with a little of his own as he conducted his sensual foreplay. The young man ran his fingers across the skin where her neck ended and saw her shiver noticeably.

"_Ooh_, congratulations…I just found one of your spots."

She answered him with a groan as he repeatedly kissed and licked the sweat that had formed there until he had her where she wanted; begging and moaning.

The young woman parted her legs, not being able to stand his torment anymore. "Kaleb, please…I want you to do it now. Nothing would make me happier than to be one with you…_Make love to me_."

Kaleb pressed his lips hard on hers, taking her breath away as he positioned his manhood in front of her awaiting entrance and gradually began to enter her with a pleasured moan; making sure that he did with the utmost gentleness and judging her facial expressions carefully.

Bastila gripped the sheets of the bed as he roamed his lips over her body and she felt the fullness and length of him; the euphoric experience beyond words since she had never felt such ecstasy like this before.

He slid out just enough to feel the spiral of her tightened muscles around his tip, and drove into her again with more vigor and momentum. Both of their bodies met to this savage rhythm as they licked, kissed, and caressed every part of each other that they could.

She dug her nails into his sweat slicked back as she instinctively wrapped her legs around his back to give him better access and he swore as he was pushed even deeper inside her. The young woman braced herself for each one of his thrusts as his muscular frame dove in harder and kept her pinned to the bed.

Hearing her moan long and slow brought him over the edge and her body was shuddering as she felt_ every single sensation_; strain and heat building up between them and threatening to contract.

Incomprehensible thoughts and fragments raged through his mind. _HarderfasterpushclosefeelsfuckincrediblesocloseshittoIlovethiswomanreachingsomuchhardermoremore_

Bastila screamed out his name as she reached the peak of pleasure that only he could take her to and a tidal wave of sheer rapture shredded through her violently; making her head clouded from everything else that wasn't happening at this exact moment. Kaleb, feeling ever aspect of her orgasm through their bond as if he was having it himself, groaned uncontrollably as he stiffened while his vigorous tremors throbbed against her inner walls. Ripples of heat, electricity, and fire consumed and crashed through them as they were both aflame and every nerve in their bodies exuded powerful swirling hurricanes of blue Force ripples around them.

He collapsed onto her chest, both of them lying in a panting sweating heap; pulses drastically trying to slow down. Kaleb tried to speak, but only heard absolute gibberish exit his mouth as he rolled off her to see the room fading in and out.

She smiled from her moment of pure pleasure, her eyelids drooping and chest ascending and descending with every gulp of air. "_You…took the words…right out of my mouth…"_

He kissed her cheek and neck, wanting to go on until even he lost track of how many he had given and his lips remembered every single place they touched her; making him forget about the heartache he suffered before.

"I love you…to the point that it hurts, Bastila Oriane Shan because you've engraved yourself into my heart." The young man stated as he stared into her mesmerizing eyes that made his pulse accelerate; his desire for her still growing stronger with every second. "Everything that I am, me in the whole, through and through and in absolutely every way I possibly know, give complete devotion with no hesitation to do anything to make you happy because I'll only selfishly be making myself happier than you'd ever know. You mean everything to me. No aspect, happy or sad detail, or quirk will turn me away; meaning I exclude nothing and want the whole you." He sighed, wishing that he could find some way to show this implausible emotion that burned inside of him even more. "I could use every adjective known to all species and it still wouldn't show you how much I love you."

"For me to have fallen in love with such an incredibly beautiful person…" Bastila gently stroked her fingers against his cheek as his eyes drooped also. "The smiles you've dragged out of me, fears you've made me forget, and the noiseless mirth that you brought out for all to hear. To love those amazing honey eyes that are windows to your loving soul, and that soul apart of the object that I love…the face that I could stare at for years and still find something new in every passing minute."

She laid her head down on his chest and he wrapped his arms around her comfortingly as exhaustion finally had its way with both of them. The young woman had one final thought before sleep overtook her and the shadows in the back of her mind dominated once again.

_My love…forgive me. _

THE END

Did that make you randy, babies? Lol Sorry could not resist!

Gat Damn! Is anybody else hot as shit from that! Whoo! I call that a present to myself for my birthday. Ya'll need to read that again! This is the best crap you gonna get for free!

Wow, I need some ice; I need to calm _down_! I said they be at it like animals! Lol I hope ya'll enjoyed that because it's all down hill from here. One more thing, I _have _to thank my beta Arsenel for putting up with my shenanigans and really helping me develop this chap. It wouldn't be half of what it is without him and this from Miss. Bank herself! Lol Oh and the two of us have a new fic coming out so look for it people! It's coming soon to a computer near you!

Whew, I don't even got nothing else to say…_That's a wrap, gatdammit_!


	13. Anguish

Ok, ya'll know I have to say Happy '07! Whew, we've been with this fic for a while, huh? I remember the last time I was saying this to all of you, but we've come a long way since we're at the 13th chap!

Told you it wasn't over, ya crazies, I would never end this series with such a horribly good cliffhanger (crosses fingers behind back) because even I wouldn't be able to take it. Sorry that it's been a bit of a wait, but I just moved to Atlanta and have a life so I'm really, really busy than my regular normal busy.

Man, I gotta say though; I was too happy with the reviews I got on the last chapter. I was really nervous about what all of you would have thought, but I'm happy to say that it was unfounded. Ya'll really seemed to like it and you know I love it (grins deviously) so it just gives me more confidence to do more of so in the future…but, unfortunately, you gotta take the good with the bad.

I've heard people call 13 an unlucky number, and I kinda agree because, like I said in the last chap., that was pretty much the last of the good fun that's going to be had after a while because of the sucky crap that has to go down. (_Well_…there are some juicy parts sprinkled here and there-I just couldn't resist. The couple is so freakin' perfect for each other, dammit!)

I'm definitely gonna do my best to keep ya'll interested while Bastila is gone and I think you'll like my own little renditions of what happens in the game before that comes to past and my other little twists. (I know my muse will since she's been waiting for it so long, the evil bastard. Lol Naw, you know you're my sister from another mister!) Oh, this is also probably gonna be another really, really long one-just giving you guys a little heads-up. I know, I know, you like the long ones, but damn it, I'm still self-conscious about it! ;) Especially this one, it's long as beans! Actually, it's so long that I'm gonna split it into three chapters because altogether, it's over a hundred pages-a freakin' novel in itself if you want a visual aid. So, since I'm not evil and you've all waited so long for this chap., I won't make you wait for the second continuing chapter and give you 14 now so you can keep reading. (Yes, I am a good person when I wanna be)

Kay, so hope you like and now song time!

Ex-Factor by Lauren Hill (This song is so deep and one of my all time favs. This one actually has both Bastila and Kaleb's thoughts in it and I'll leave it to you to discern which one is which. In fact, this is the theme for the whole chapter, so have at it.)

**Also, thanks to my beta Arsenel-you're the _best_! **

Chapter 13

Damp, matted lashes amalgamated with even wetter bluish-grey eyes as Bastila had try to blink away the tears attempting to wash away the memory of Kaleb's kisses on her alabaster cheek, but it seemed like even the wind did not pity her situation as it harshly blew the droplets away or hurriedly dried the ones that survived so that they could not accomplish their mission.

She stayed her hands on the bitingly arctic metal of the railings that separated her from the endless ocean, the sensation being one of the things to prove to her that this moment in her life was indeed real, while the wind once again taunted her by making her still unrestrained hair it's plaything as it swished around every which way about her face. The woman couldn't explain why she kept that one aspect of her features unaffected when she had so circumspectly replaced every single article of clothing she had formerly donned in the paucity of time Bastila thought herself deserving from her dastardly act.

Maybe it was because it was the one thing that didn't scream at the top of its lungs about the things she did with Kaleb last night, but still enticed others toward the well-guarded secret as well as show a sign of her complete and total acceptance to the incident. There would be no more twisting of the truth and she would take back none of it; she knew what she did.

_Oh, do I know what I did._ She thought as she couldn't help, but shiver pleasurably while her whole body tingled with warmth from just the mere thought of their beautiful gratification.

The young woman had even allowed herself the luxury of dreams that had nothing to do with the Republic or the Jedi in any respect while she slumbered; the first time in months that she had felt any proper serenity. That night had been filled with such lovely visions of temptation…the thought of being able to kiss Kaleb whenever she so desired, no matter what time it may be, and in front of whomever might happen to be there without a second thought.

"To be able to actually wake in his arms without being fearful of a rising sun or others callous judgment." She commented; the words that escaped her mouth soft, but carrying such a heavy burden of bitterness.

Bastila was almost compelled to laugh from this tone that was so bridled with emotion that she formerly would have locked away, but now…now she just didn't have the strength or ability.

He had done this; opened her very being so wide that she was not only able to feel emotion again, but actually had no defense or shelter against it either when he was the one who caused such.

Kaleb was right…he had made her human.

Weak and vulnerable to sin as she had been flung from the immaculate purity and innocence of being a Jedi and plunged back into the common epidemic of humanity's overindulgence. Made it so she couldn't even go back to her old ways; experience the one thing you can't hide with chanting a mantra in monotone or going into a deep meditation to find inner peace, because he had taken the place of all that-_he_ was her paradise; her _only_ nirvana. She expelled a deep sigh as her eyes closed in defeat, her mind already producing a deep state of pensiveness as she reflected on this man.

It was far too late for any liberations or salvations…now her heart would always jump at the sound of his voice, burning heat rise instinctively when he touched her, and pulse accelerate illogically whenever the two's eyes locked.

Was it such a surprise that she fell in love with a reconstruction that the Council made? Fell for someone who was automatically everything she had desperately strived for all her life?

_No, _She thought resolutely, _they do take the blame for most of this, but falling in love…was my fault and my fault only. _

Yes, the woman accepted all of this, but accepted it in two ways: brain and heart. Her mind, which did escape all thoughts of the Council and the ways of a Jedi last night was once again infected by their philosophies, now that the deed was done with, responded nonchalantly that none of those symptoms were particularly crucial as long as she made sure that she reached Malak and saved the Republic: ever calculating and not being perturbed by meager setbacks as long as everything still went according to plan; the other lingering emotions would be dealt with later. Her heart was appalled and saw for the first time in her life how icy the other part in her had become, but wholly saw the situation as more of a small, gracious relief that the woman had been granted from her regular, drab existence.

In a sense, her body seemed to be in temporary agreement, so then…why was she crying; sobbing her fractured soul out for all to see? The thought of her knowingly disobeying the Council's creeds? To know that she could not and never would look at herself as a full Jedi again?

No, all of those explanations were way too simple and entirely too selfish for her to care about at the moment, but _it_ was still there; gnawing against her conscience mercilessly, like a termite to wood, as the tangled web of her fabrications had become so twisted that it couldn't help but blur truth from reality and try to make it seem like it had always been this way. But this particular thread could not be hidden so easily or weakly wrapped into some different one like the others…

Their whole relationship was based on a monstrous lie-an anomaly that couldn't be because it wasn't genuine in the first place. Yes, it was true that Kaleb loved her because she could see and feel the truth through his gestures; a love so apparent that it couldn't help to be shown just as strong physically as it was internal.

The man she loved though…_Kaleb_ wasn't real, so therefore there could be no plausible truth in his love…because Revan was horribly valid. But last night…Bastila wanted to believe in what she knew was lies, wanted the fantasy that their love would last forever and deny anything else. This could not be though, as reality's thunderous footfalls had uninvitingly stepped into her view once again and ended it far too abruptly.

At first, it seemed like she had picked the right option-the only alternative that was obtainable to her as they had decided to fix Revan's fragile mind and reprogram it into a less hostile and dangerous being. It was for the good of the Republic and all of the people it held when they decided to give him this new identity and then hope that his subconscious would conveniently be used to their advantage in locating the Star Forge, but even the Council with all it's wisdom did not take into consideration that they were invading the mind of a new innocent. Kaleb knew nothing of the millions he killed with just a single word, how his hands had bathed in blood far too many times to ever have a hope of being cleansed, and that he razed and completely obliterated entire worlds if they did not give into his demands…but…

This entirely different person who hated this abrupt mission that was forced upon him for reasons that couldn't fully be explained or comprehended, but always managed to make sure that there was a smile on everyone else's face when times were tough. A man who never hesitated to relieve the slings and arrows that life provided for those he cared about, as he effortlessly made lifelong friends with all of his companions in the process. Became the captain of a motley crew that was so diverse and contrast in every way and made them come together to resemble something close to a family when, in any other circumstance, none of them would spare a glance on each other.

A sad smile formed on Bastila's quivering lips as the wind had momentarily settled down, one of the salty droplets actually being allowed to gently creep down her face.

How the same man slowly helped her crawl out of that pretentious and ostentatious shell that she swore she would never become encompassed in; showing her that maybe it wasn't her fate to deal with every hindrance and heartache alone because there was now a caring person who wanted to eagerly listen to them and relieve her burden in any way possible. Suffering through her hurtful jibes and insults because he had seen past her prideful manner and waited patiently for her to be on a truly comfortable level with him. Even that smirk that drove her crazy when he flashed it because it was so self-satisfied or perverted, but so adorably handsome at the same time when the light ridges of his dimples shown also and accented his whole face that much further; his common smiles, having such an infectious amount of good-nature and humor that the woman couldn't resist smiling too, even if it was internally at the time.

That was the reason behind her misery and the horrible pain that was slowly consuming her recently renewed spirit. The real reason why she couldn't stand facing him when he would eventually wake up that morning while she had spent such a large amount of time, or at least it seemed like it, absorbing his serene features as he laid next to her; battered by grievous assaults of guilt when she would see that pure gleam in those painfully stunning eyes that he did not actually own.

That was the reason why she cried…she had repeatedly hurt the one person she allowed herself to love when she swore to herself that she would never hurt the man again.

Tears were shed because the young woman knew she didn't deserve a love as divine as his when all she did was constantly lie and only make his already problematic existence worse. And Bastila wept miserably because her heart didn't accept the pitiful excuses that she made as to why the truth was not revealed behind those horrible visions he suffered through daily or why her mind continued to be obstinate in naming this mission of defeating Malak more important then him.

He would seek her out, she was sure, and Bastila made it easy for him by completely opening her half of the bond. As she thought before, she wouldn't run away from the truth any longer.

She wouldn't run away from _him_ any longer.

------------------------------------

Kaleb sleepily smacked his lips as he blinked with closed eyes threatening to open, but he valiantly tried to once again resist the urge to wake up, the coldness of the mattress seeping into his bare skin making his whole body shiver.

He groaned as he made a blind grab for some covers. _So damn cold…freakin' freezing my ass off…but… _

The man suddenly smirked naughtily as he decided to roll across the mattress and warm himself and his bond-mate up while experimenting with both of their body heats, but all that greeted him was another unexpected chill as he felt another pillow across from his chest, the place he formerly claimed home to only Bastila, and everything…

_Everything else that wasn't her._

The man's eyes rapidly shot open. "Bastila?" Kaleb shot up; the dark cotton sheets of the bed capriciously draped across his legs, and frantically scanned the room for his missing lover.

There was a horrible sinking sensation in the pit of his stomach when his eyes had eventually fallen to the carpet and there was no trace of her clothing on the floor.

"Oh no…Bas…" He trailed despairingly as he swung his legs to the side of the bed and picked up the one thing the woman had saw fit to leave behind.

It was the dragon pearl necklace that he had given her on Tatooine and he had the worst feeling that she didn't just forget it as she left their room.

"Dammit…she probably thought what we did was unforgivable and that damn jedi code got to her again. Her way of not blaming me for what we had done." He slammed his fist on the little dresser that stood beside the bed. "But she's not gonna keep running away from me like this-not when she admitted her love, when I could see it burning in her eyes for me."

Kaleb automatically went into a sort of autopilot as he pushed his naked form off the bed to pull on his pants, shirt, jacket, and boots; all with his eyelids closed as he reached through their bond to locate Bastila. It was all clouds of grey until a light shone and he saw a few snapshots of her looking out at the ocean while gripping the railing and crying…just outside of the Embassy. It was surprising that she wasn't that far away and just how easy it was to find the one he was searching for when she had never willingly left her side of the bond so exposed.

The man opened his eyes. "She…" His eyebrows creased from slight confusion, "wants me to find her?"

He didn't allow himself the time to find out the answer as he hurriedly opened the room's door and ran through the Embassy's hallway; darting and dodging the soldiers who were engaged in meaningless conversations, carrying in supplies, or just standing around taking up space. When Kaleb had finally exited the place, he saw the one woman who was able to succeed in making his state of mind an emotional turmoil and still make him want her that much more with every step he took.

Kaleb approached painstakingly slow; truly not knowing what to do as so many thoughts were swimming around in his head in such a rapid spin that as soon as he tried to address one of them, ten more screamed at him in jealously as they wanted to be acknowledged too. As long as he cared to remember, he had always been a person who made decisions with no regrets because he knew that his selection was the best path to take, but now she put him in an indecisive state of mind when he was anything but and the man absolutely hated it.

Kaleb wanted to yell at her for playing around with these new, vulnerable feelings he now had, but then didn't want to make her cry anymore since an unforgiving, grating sensation spread across his chest and turned into empathy. He wanted to be able to turn around and give _her_ the cold shoulder so she knew how _he_ felt, but then had the overpowering instinct to hold her close because he knew it was harder for her since she was a jedi and that was all she knew.

He placed two fingers on the side of his head and rubbed his temple. _This is unbearable; I'm a walking paradox. _

His view came back to Bastila as he got closer, his feet desperately wanting to speed towards her besides his rational thoughts, and see those gorgeous features yet again while her eyes would smile when he came to the rescue as he always did.

The man's mood abruptly darkened again as he tried to think that this was her fault.

_Damn those eyes of hers; the tricksters. _He thought resentfully. _And damn everything about her!_

_He_ had been _completely_ content with relying on himself and _never_ having to require anyone else to go about his business, but…_Bastila_…

He unexpectedly stopped walking; almost as if some invisible barrier was in his way: _She makes me nauseatingly dependent._

_He_ needed her now…loved the way that she always had some quick comeback from his teasing and actually made him think about what he was about to say because he considered her his equal, adored the moments when they talked like they had always been the best of friends even when they hadn't known each other for half as long, and treasured every smile, grin, or smirk that he got from her because it definitely wasn't an easy battle to get those expressions out in the first place, but well worth it when seen because he felt like he was…floating was the only way to explain it. And _he_ wanted to preserve that feeling and make sure that it would never go away no matter what the price. So…

Kaleb resumed walking.

Bastila was so deeply lost in her own musings that she didn't even hear the soft footfalls of her bond-mate on the damp cement as he made his way up to her; stopping a few feet behind the tormented woman in silence.

But then, it came: sudden-abrupt.

Those well known feelings, which not even their bond could emulate, of tingling electricity taking over every fiber of her being; the sensitivity of the wind on her skin maddening as her eyes widened when she felt ivory pieces wrap around her neck and the dragon pearl lay against her chilled skin; slightly warmed by his hands.

The woman couldn't bear to turn around to face him; couldn't stomach his pained face.

She exhaled softly, shakily. "Kaleb…"

"Don't. I told you, it was made for you-I'm not taking it back." She felt him pause, the hidden pain that accompanied. "Besides…it's not my color."

_A joke? He's uncomfortable, but Force, I can't blame him. I…I wonder if… _

Bastila used all of her courage to take a quick side glance at his expression and wasn't surprised that it was irritatingly complex; still a holographic card like she thought when they were sitting on the sands of Tatooine.

"_Please don't_…don't do that." She requested sadly. "The more anger you have against me, the better I feel about myself."

Kaleb kept his silence from her remark as he stood there watching her turned around figure, his resolve of trying to detest her for what she did immediately broken besides her request as he saw her isolated anguish; wanting to help dissolve her worries, but again, having no idea how to do so. This was also obvious, but he knew that she would only tell him how to assist if she wanted him to know how to do so.

"How…long have you been there behind me?" The young woman unexpectedly asked before he could utter anything else; deciding to ease her way into this burdensome conversation before getting to her point.

"Not long." He answered distractedly, but trying to curb his impatience. "Just…thinking."

"Yes, I've been doing a lot of that too." She admitted forlornly.

"Damn." Kaleb commented: trying to recapture his need to smile since it was so desperately needed in this situation. "I guess I need to find better ways of distracting you again, huh?"

"Hmm…" She replied with an inflection that was close to being amused from recollections of their past conversation, but added nothing else to ease his troubled mind.

The questions that plagued him came back just as rapidly as they had before, but he charily calculated them all, not wanting to come to any outlandish conclusions about why she left him alone on that cold, hard bed.

"Bas, why…" He faltered, re-thinking his approach. "If I…did something wrong, I'm sorry. I really-"

"Stop." Was the quick reply as she cut of his apology; hurriedly rubbing her tears away because she wouldn't be able to take the thought that she made him feel guilty. "It's not you…it was never you, but me, Kaleb."

He took a few tentative steps forward and placed a hand on her shoulder, in a hope that it would be more reassuring to her that he would understand. "Did you leave because…you thought that you were to blame?"

Bastila let out a cheerless chuckle as she couldn't halt more of the warm, salty tears rolling down her face. It was perfectly understandable why he would think that she left him because she thought her actions shameful. If only it were true that this was solely about what happened last night, if only it could be so simple. She would take that any day than having the trouble of knowing that his whole life was a fabrication.

Kaleb placed his right hand over her hidden face's cheek and used the pad of his thumb to wipe her tears away; every one of them that descended feeling like a physical blow to him, but she still evaded his gaze by moving away from his touch.

"It wasn't your fault, Bas." The man told her in an assuring manner, knowing that something was hurting her deeply and had the worst suspicion that it was him. "_Why_…why won't you even look at me?"

The plea in his tone cut into her as Bastila couldn't help trembling from her shot nerves; the sea of tears pressuring her to let them loose behind her eyes. She tried so hard to honor him, it was the least that she owed, but every time she even slightly lifted her head, her vision would once again become watery. He was so heartfelt with his intentions, so innocent in all this and here she was making him feel like he was the one who had done some great evil.

"_Sorry_…" The woman managed to get out, her voice trembling and exhausted, "_I'm so sorry…Kaleb...I didn't mean for it…didn't want you to be…_" Bastila trailed wretchedly as she couldn't even make comprehendible sentences anymore.

He couldn't come up with a good enough reason not to embrace her as he protectively wrapped his arms around her hips and came up close behind; wanting that glorious warmth that was being denied to him-knowing that he would drive himself insane if he didn't meet that insatiable and deprived need to make contact with this woman that raised up such a storm of myriad emotions inside.

"_No, you don't have anything to be sorry for_." He whispered tenderly in her ear. "_I don't care if I take the blame for what happened last night because I'm the one who triggered it, but you_…" He pulled her closer, finally eliminating the small gap between them while holding her firmly as if she was the most sacred and valued treasure in the galaxy; deathly afraid of losing such a find, "_you're flawless, Bas, perfect in every way_."

"_Oh Force…_" She cried out with tearful gasps, "_What have I done_?"

Bastila frenetically threw off Kaleb's arms and fully broke down as she gripped the rail to support herself.

The man swore; loathing himself right now because it only seemed like he was making this circumstance worse as he kneeled down next to her. "Bastila…I don't know why I'm causing you so much pain, but please…tell me how I can make you feel better-tell me what to do to make you happy again."

Her brown hair billowed around her face as she slowly lifted it and finally met him at eye-level; the begging in his eyes from him not knowing what to do to relieve her of her hurt devastating.

Bastila's rubbed the back of her hand against his cheek as pain deeply influenced her features.

"_Hate me_." The young woman replied dreadfully as she sniffed, "For your sake, stop loving me and hate the despicable thing that I am-that I've become."

Kaleb's eyes widened in disbelief from what he was hearing; utterly baffled at her horrible orders.

"Hate you?" He questioned angrily. "For you to _say_…something like _that_, let alone _ask_ _me_ is…_how could you_?"

"Because I'm not flawless, Kaleb!" She threw back at him harshly; the wall that blocked her tears suddenly broken. "Because you're whole life would be that much better off if you…" It _hurt_-it hurt _so_ _badly_, but she forced it out again, "if you didn't love me."

"You can't keep doing this, Bastila! The love I have isn't some damn faucet that you can turn on and off when you feel like it!" The man exclaimed furiously; just so tired of bandying with the concept of their feelings for each other. "_How can you even stand_ _here and do this to me_?" He asked roughly as it became increasingly harder to breathe while the emotions he felt burned his throat. "How…_in the galaxy_, could you formulate in that head of yours that _my _life would be better without loving you?"

"Because none of this is real!" Bastila snapped, as she tugged at his open leather coat and shirt; touching the skin of his face. "None of this is the real you and…" Her resolve cracked, "_I can't_…I just can't do this! I can't take the _lies_, the _half_-_truths_, and the _cryptic_ _words_ that blind you into thinking that what the Council did-what _I_ did, was worth it just to get what we wanted!" She saw the apparent livid confusion cloud his features, but she kept going; knowing that it was disgustingly narcissistic to not explain herself, but her heart leaping at the chance at this being the first truly honest thing she was saying to him on this entire mission. "But _this_ _thing_ I have with _you_, Kaleb…_it's so real_, so _unbearably_ valid in this world of mendacity that you live in and…this anomaly _just_ _can't_ be. It's taking love from something that's not there because this isn't who you are and-"

**_/Stay where you are, human, and do not move!/ _**A commanding voice suddenly ordered, as the two of them turned to see a lone Selkath surrounded by droids; all with guns aimed at Kaleb.

"And I, what Bas?" He asked as he looked back at her, not even further acknowledging the Selkath despite the raging aggravation he felt inside from their unwelcome intrusion.

The young man knew that whatever she was going to tell him was important from the desperate way she was talking to him and there was no way that he was going to leave her when she was crying like this. He didn't care if the whole damn planet came to take him away-he would fight them all.

_Why? Why, in the galaxy, did this have to happen now? _Bastila thought as her hands loosened their grip on his clothes and she started to back away from him; feeling guiltier when she saw the enraged expression on his face. _I'm nothing…nothing but a coward…I can't even keep going to tell him the truth._

_**/Silence, human! We have detected a number of detonations coming from the vicinity of the Hrakert Rift. You have been known to ask questions about this, and our spy monitors in the Republic Embassy recorded you leaving in a submersible that descended to the Hrakert Rift. You will come with us immediately to answer for your actions, or we will be forced to take you the hard way!/**_

Her eyes widened when she saw the dark look in Kaleb's eyes. "Look here_, fish face_, I'm gonna give you to three to crawl your rude self and your little toys out of here before I kick your squishy blue ass. **_One_**…" He trailed off in a sinister tone.

_No, this isn't right. That look…his voice…_ Bastila paused, horror starting to creep upon her._ I can hardly feel Kaleb at all…his aura is so dark._

The young man was hardly surprised as he heard the Selkath officer order his legion of droids to target him, but he only raised his right hand; arm extended behind him as swirling invisible Force, to the fish-like alien, thickly churned around it. "**_Two_**…"

His bond-mate knew that what he was about to do was wrong, and no matter how much of a fight her heart was giving her brain because the intruders ruined her confession, she knew that this travesty couldn't be allowed to happen…especially not on her behalf. Those droids would be destroyed far too easily by Kaleb…no, it wasn't him she was seeing any longer-Revan, all because he wanted to stay…to find out the truth that he had repeatedly earned from her.

"Kaleb, wait…" She all but begged; her throat scratchy from her tears as she latched on to his dark yellow polo shirt, gaining his attention for the moment.

The foreboding gleam in his eyes was all but gone when he felt her actions-noticed the frantic pleading in her glistening bluish-grey orbs, but his hand still not descending.

"Bas, I'm not leaving you-I _won't_ leave you," He protested resolutely, "and all that's standing between us…I won't kill the Selkath, just break his guards." He compromised. "Just put him into a stasis until we're done talking…then maybe I'll let him go…_if he's a good little fishy_." The man added threateningly.

"No Re-Kaleb, please," Bastila pleaded, seeing the wanton destruction growing in his eyes. _Just like before… _"Go with them, I-I'll be fine; I promise you that-just calm down." She added as she channeled all of the soothing Force that was possible in her current state of dishevelment and melded it into their bond; hoping that her deepest regret wouldn't be included in the transaction.

He immediately felt the unnatural calm that she was trying to force on him and roughly blocked all of it.

"You're lying." Kaleb stated firmly, not falling for her tricks. "And I won't be calm. They're trying to take you away from me-after all the things _we've_ done for them, they won't even let _us_ talk! _No_. I'm plain _sick_ and _tired_ of being bullied around by some tyrannical _fishheads_ when we've already acquired the Star Map." He opened his lifted arm's hand. "_We_ don't need _anything_ else from _them_…" He replied almost trancelike, "_we don't need them_."

"Kaleb!" Bastila practically shouted at her bond-mate _…My mate…_,as she placed his face between her soft hands; forcing him to look at only her.

His disturbingly yellow tinted eyes shot currents of fear through her veins, but even more then that horrible burst of violence was the amount of blissful love that was fighting through to show itself to her. Her womb clenched as she reminisced on the events of the previous night, but knew she had to return to this task…her duty at hand.

"Kaleb," She called out softer this time; her eyes own emotional state focused more on her own love, "please, don't do this. You…are not a Jedi," Her voice trailing with pain, "but I am." A tear fell from her eye as her betrayal to herself and to him further split her already damaged shell. "W-We will both go with them." The sheer wounded, poignant hurt in her voice nearly drove her to another wave of tears as a drop fell just above the slight curve of her lips, yet would not move; drawing Kaleb's attention to the soft folds of temptation. "Then, we will talk; alright?" She said, bargaining her heart away for him yet again. "_Please_…just stop this madness."

A part of him was entranced by this bargain; so ready to rearrange every planet in the universe if need be just to satisfy her, but the other was _so_ full of hate. Hateful at the fact that even though she promised they could talk, he would have to wait for such a precious moment. And it was completely intolerable that _this_ _Selkath_ thought he could control _him_ and _his love_ like that.

_But if I kill him, she'll probably cry more. I wouldn't…I couldn't survive that. Not when I'm already hurting her…broken her inside in the first place. _

**_You don't have to kill it-we've already established that; _**The other voice answered, so deceptively calm, **_just hurt them…badly. Hurt them for thinking that they can actually get away with this. Hurt them for this extreme act of arrogance against you and Bastila._**

_Yes…_

"Bas, I don't want you to sacrifice yourself for me-not anymore-neither one of us is going with this _asshole_. I'm giving him a chance to _back off_, but I'm _not_ going to that courtroom. Not until I'm _good_ and _ready_." He suddenly broke contact with her eyes as he turned around to them, "**_Three_**…"

"_NO_!" The woman shouted as her hand, which still held his shirt in a tight grip, brought him unexpectedly forward.

Unbalanced by the sudden act, Kaleb found himself falling forward until his descent was halted by the cushion of sweet, soft lips. Hot wells of fire burned throughout Bastila's body and settled in her nether regions as her stomach could feel the barest hint of his erection; rising up instinctively and pressing against her. Opening her lips, she darted her tongue into his hot mouth, hoping to quell the fire burning in him with her sacrifice.

And she hated herself.

Bastila hated herself for enjoying this kiss that her body had been longing for, reveling in his touch; his hard body pressed against hers, his love. Gradually her hands, of their own accord, released his shirt and rubbed against his toned chest; his own moving to encircle her waist and pull her closer. Her fingers suddenly darted behind his neck to pull him deeper into her as another tear she couldn't stop trickled down her cheek, but it was blown away as it joined the salty wind before the man could sense any trace of it.

Slowly, hesitantly, she released him. Her heart beat madly against her chest as of in fury for what she was putting herself through; the incomprehensible pleasure that this man could wreak on her too much to handle at the moment. Her eyes were now clear of the tears that marred her face and her mouth still wet with a thin trail of saliva that spread between their lips; not wanting to separate either…_Force_; she was going to _kill_ _herself_ after this was over.

But…as long as she was in his arms, she would take the _agony_; just to have the same Kaleb that she fell in love with stay with her; keep him alive in any way possible.

The man was stunned as he saw his vision of beauty move away from him as his once raised arm fell limply to his side. The other voice was gone, completely evaporated from the heat both of their bodies conducted when their lips met.

_Wow… _Was the first sensible thought that crept into his head. The kiss was so bold, so random, so…unlike a jedi-so unlike her.

Thoughts of those damnable fish people, the droids ready to assassinate him on the spot, or even the conversation the two of them had earlier-the whole reason why he was so willing to fight in the first place- had flown out into open space at the mere touch of those magical lips of hers.

_She must…she has to still love me from her actions. There can be no denying-I felt it in her. _

That was his second notion, but his erection couldn't help taking control of his train of thought and all forms of motor control. His body instinctively became heated as all he could think of was her, a bed, _or just any solid thing…, _and the encore she would never forget. _Though that would never be enough, I'd need a lifetime just to properly express these feelings for her…_

_But for now_, it would just be them and he would rip out the locks of the door and seal the two of them in a room and then they would talk…_later_.

_I wonder if she would go for it…probably not, but maybe if I asked…she seemed to kiss me as urgently as I wanted her-**NO**. _

This single intruding thought resounded and burst from a part deep inside of him, the part that broke down the man's fertile dreams; breaking down the semblance and bringing rationality with it.

**_NO. _**The voice repeated itself acting as a martyr to quell this raging inferno that she brought out in him; an echo of what she had shouted before.

_Wait-why did she bring that fire out in me…something inside me…that Selkath-that's it! I was…Oh man, I was ready to kill him, but it wasn't…**they were trying to take her away** **from me**! I had every right-**she's mine**…but she only kissed me…**to save them**? And if the officer isn't hurt, why is she still crying? **Damn it all**, I just want her to stop crying…I want her to be glad again and…even if it was for a second, if I could make her life easier by agreeing to her request, then I'm…gonna leap at the chance. _

He swallowed to wet his increasingly parched throat. "Ok…I'll go with you, Selkath."

The droids automatically lowered their rifles as the alien officer gave them a signal.

Arms still wrapped around Kaleb, Bastila wanted to cry even more when she heard his words of confirmation; her limbs refusing to let go or move and the rest of her body following suit. Her mind was in shambles, not only from the kiss and all that came from it, but the absolute contentment she found in him: as if part of her soul was his and vice versa. She knew it had to be their bond, the bond that she had used to save this fabrication of a life he owned now, but Force, if she could do it again-just for a second to make those loving eyes of his see the truth and still love her after, she would do it. Give everything she had for this man that she loved even if he was just a shadow of another….

Leaning herself into him, she tightened her grip around his lower stomach, afraid to lose him after her confession, afraid that he would not desire her anymore when she would have to eventually tell him, plain afraid.

"Thank you Kaleb_, thank you_."

With those final words, she knew that her coffin had been nailed shut should she ever find out that he would stop loving her.

If he would be forced to stay with her this way, he could not truly live, and nothing would make any sort of sense…but she would hold on to _this_: the beautiful lie that this was real. The remnants of someone who should have been long dead.

_Then, _She burrowed closer to his comforting warmth. _I will love what remains._

"Hey, come on." Kaleb, the genuine one, assured her lovingly. "I'm sorry that I made you worry-forgive me…I lost my head there for a second; stress getting the best of me." He embraced her with one arm, while the other, who was so ready to destroy all in its path, became docile and let her hair flow through its fingers. "I couldn't…control myself, Bas, but now…you know just how much I need you…how I would do anything for you." A sharp pain shot across his chest as he thought on her previous words, "And…if it's only the jedi keeping you from completely opening yourself to me, then…just do your duty for your order…and for me…don't let the dark side consume me. I've felt it and so have you…this malicious thing inside of me just festering and waiting to be unleashed. I don't…think I can fight it alone, Bas, so just…stay with me until I can find a way. Stay with me until I can beat it for good…and I won't die if you leave me behind or be so needy of that stunning smile of yours. When I can gain some sort of immunity against this astounding beauty you bear so effortlessly." Kaleb gazed deeply into her eyes; his lips trembling from how hard it was to function when she wasn't near him. "Just…_stay_ _with me_…lover or no, _swear to me_ _that_ _you'll be there_."

Inadvertently sniffing at the mention of the dark side, she felt his arms hold her tightly, affectionately in a hope to banish all of her fears. Force, she wanted him to. Dark Lord and mind wipe or not, Kaleb called out to her soul, her very being…and his request for her to stay with him…_Force help her_. She had already turned her back on the Order with what she did last night, but even those things paled in comparison from betraying him-she wouldn't…couldn't do it-it was too much. His love for her was too pure when she had only given falsehoods to feed this product of his affection.

_And your heart… _

_Kaleb_, his name…once it made her shake with fury at his childish antics; when she was crossed with his every action, but now, oh how she craved his jokes that brightened her very day and his gentlest touches.

Softer than any Jedi could hope to hold a baby without any valid affection for it: yet as firm as a Dark Lord of the Sith holding a lightsaber and primed to strike. She knew it was horrible, wrong to think she deserved anything, but all she asked for was to be with him too. To snuggle within his warmth and inhale that enticing masculine scent; to feel his strong muscles contract or loosen at her whim and his voice soothe her very essence.

"_Yes, Kaleb_…" The muffled sounds of her voice grew louder only to reach his ears alone as her head escaped his hold and she stared into those gorgeous, normal golden orbs of his; once admiring them, fearing, loathing, and now the permanent loving. "I will continue to stay…and never let the dark side take hold over you." As she snuggled towards his chest once again, silent tears were released into the soft fabric of his shirt as she whispered the last part to herself; careful of her bond-mate's senses. "_Ever again_…"

**_/That's enough humans!/ _**The officer responded brashly, already irritated from their time consuming display. **_/You will not waste anymore of the court's or my time with your antics-we are leaving now!/ _**

Bastila could feel Kaleb tense up again, but she only shook her head and smiled at him when it seemed like ages since the last time she had done so. The man had finally achieved his goal of making her happy and felt a deep warmth bloom inside of him and spread from doing so. There was no way that he couldn't smile back from her lovely expression and his only grew when she slipped her hand in his; giving him added tenderness and affection. They _both _followed the officer; not even paying attention to the droid guards behind them with weapons raised and ready to fire at a moment's notice, but enamored from the closeness of the other.

----------------------------------

The Selkath judges were conversing amongst themselves when Kaleb was shoved into the courtroom and walked towards the center. He turned around to glance at Bastila, who had to stand behind the railings that led to where the judges were, with a hopeless expression, but her eyes gleamed with compassion.

/Don't worry; you'll do fine. I'm sure of it./ She encouraged him through their bond. /You're you, remember?/

He grinned. /The one and only…Thanks, Bas./

**_/But if they could do that, the whole system could…/ _**The Judge known as Kota suddenly trailed out loud, ominously.

**_/Silence! This not for outsiders to hear!/ _**The Selkath who sat in the middle, Naleshekan, boomed as he turned his attention on Kaleb. **_/Well, human, you find yourself in a most difficult predicament. The Hrakert Rift is the most precious resource on Manaan, and everything that threatens our entire species./_**

/**_We will not tolerate threats to our neutrality, our existence, and our way of life!_**/ Duula shouted at the man harshly.

/**_As much as we may admire your Republic and your Order in particular,_**/ Jhosa started; to show that this was not a fully biased crowd. /**_I believe you will have a hard time explaining your role in this incident adequately./_**

Naleshekan narrowed his bulgy eyes. **_/We have determined that you are responsible for the detonations that occurred near the Hrakert Rift, we demand to know what occurred down there!/_**

_**/If the Republic has broken its neutrality treaty with us, the repercussions shall be very grave indeed!/ **_

Kaleb rolled his eyes at Duula's attempt to cosign with Naleshekan.

**_/Human,/ _**The judge known to be Shelkar interjected at last. **_/What have you done to the Rift?/ _**

"I didn't do a damn thing to your precious Rift. The explosions that all of you were so nosy about were at the research stations that both of our governments set up there."

**_/Research stations?! What are you talking about?/ _**Naleshekan asked with fervor; clearly not believing him. **_/Don't try to lie to us, human!/ _**

Shelkar cleared his throat. **_/We know of this./_**

"_Yeah_, _I bet you fishy bastards do_." Kaleb murmured under his breath.

_**/What?!/**_

_**/It will be discussed later./**_

The other judge didn't take the hint. **_/This cannot be kept silent! The Council will-/_**

**_/The Council will hear nothing of this!/ _**Shelkar dismissed in a warning tone. **_/And you will keep your silence or be ejected from the court!/_**

**_/But we cannot-/ _**Naleshekan argued before being cut off once again.

_**/Silence! You will not be told again!/ **_

The uncooperative judge held his tongue as Kaleb saw his squishy face have the closest thing to anger on it.

The young man chuckled. "Heh, got a rebel on your hands, huh?"

Judge Jhosa ignored his remark. **_/What has happened at the research station? What caused the explosions?/ _**

"You're finally asking the right questions. The whole station was driven mad."

_**/Mad? I find that hard to believe, human./ **_

**_/Hmm…we did receive those transmissions just before the station went silent…/ _**Kota trailed in thought.

**_/Ask the human what happened!/ _**Naleshekan exclaimed brashly.

_**/Well, human? What drove all of the beings down there mad?/ **_

"Whoa, only the Selkath were the ones who went mad. Everybody else was just scared to death from them."

**_/You accuse us of being to blame for this?/ _**The brash judge once again asked curtly.

"No, I don't accuse you-I accuse all of the Selkath down there who were ripping people to shreds and eating them without remorse./

_**/You insolent-/ **_

**_/Calm yourself./ _**Shelkar commanded sternly. **_/We are more advanced than that./ _**

Kaleb scoffed impenitently at the judge's remarks. This court reminded him far too much of some sort of fish Jedi Council: pompous bastards who thought themselves too high class for emotion and frankly above it in the first place.

**_/Human,/ _**Shelkar acknowledged, **_/Why do you say that the Selkath went mad?/_**

The young man gave him a look of utter disbelief. "Uh, because they had eaten everyone they laid their buggy eyes on?" He questioned rhetorically, "Call it a gut feeling."

**_/But why?/ _**This time judge Kota asked him. **_/If the entire station-/_**

"The Selkath." Kaleb interrupted.

_**/If…the Selkath were driven mad, as would seem the case, surely there would be some evidence that showed that something like that transpired down there. What was it?/ **_

"This enormous, I mean freakin' huge firaxan shark was sending out some kind of psychic call. Most of the humans who had still survived down there said that it was some horrible screech-a loud screaming in their heads."

Shelkar eyed him strangely. **_/The explosion…to kill a giant firaxan?/_**

_**/A giant firaxan? Could it be…/**_

_**/Impossible! It is only a legend!/ **_

**_/But he said he killed it…didn't he?/ _**Jhosa questioned, unsure of the validation of what he said.

_**/You killed this shark, human?/**_

"You got it twisted; I destroyed that machinery to save it. It did nothing to deserve death and had only called its babies to protect the kolto."

_**/The Progenitor…it must have been!/**_

**_/Be quiet!/ _**Duula demanded. **_/That is merely a myth, and not for outsiders to hear!/ _**

_**/But if it was the life-bringer…the ancestor of our species…Think of what this could mean!/**_

_**/If it always laired there…then perhaps the kolto…/**_

**_/Enough!/ _**Shelkar boomed, **_/Off-worlders are not supposed to hear of such things./_**

**_/But he said he saved it…he destroyed the harvesters to save it./ _**Judge Kota brought back up.

**_/Indeed. This casts your actions in a new light, human. We thank you for the destruction of the machinery and saving the giant firaxan shark, which we believe is the source of our kolto…or at least, its guardian. While we cannot show our gratitude overtly, know that you have earned our respect./ _**The judge concluded with a tone that, if Kaleb wasn't mistaken, sounded satisfied with his actions.

"Feeling all sorts of warm and fuzzy inside," The man responded flatly, "but I'd like to go now and it seems like we're done here."

_**/Indeed, human, this trial is no over and-/ **_

A Selkath, who Kaleb immediately recognized as the jail warden, suddenly barged in through a side door behind all of the judges and gurgled something into Shelkar's ear.

Kaleb scanned the scene with burning curiosity; wondering what they could be discussing. _The fishheads couldn't still be trying to prove that I'm guilty?_

The warden had lifted up and left briskly, as the judge who he had been talking to looked back at the human.

_**/I have just been updated to the fact that the trial for Sunry has been scheduled for today's date. Is this assumption right, human?/**_

"_Dammit_…" The young man groaned; forgetting all about that stupid trial and his impetuous actions the other day. "Yes, unfortunately, that's true."

_**/Then we will start as soon as all parties have arrived. It should take no more than a couple of minutes, human, but you may consider this brief reprieve to examine your case one last time./ **_

All of the judges started conversing amongst themselves as Kaleb fell wearily back into a plastic chair and took out the comlink that was still located in his jacket's pocket; flipping it open and pressing a button.

"…_Huh…what's up?" _Carth replied sleepily as he rubbed his eyes.

"Hey, sorry to wake you up, sleepyhead, and disturb all of that snoring," Kaleb commented humorously, "but I need you to do me a favor."

"_Go ahead…and I don't snore."_

"How would you know if you're sleeping, genius?"

"_You know, I would really think of coming up with a new approach since you're the one asking me to do a favor." _

"Alright, alright; you _don't_ snore…loudly. Anyway, I need you to wake up that old geezer that someone named Jolee and tell him that Sunry's trial is about to start in a few minutes."

"_Oh right, the case. Did you find out if Sunry's guilty or not?" _

"Actually, I did and let's just say it's not a good thing."

"_Uh-oh, but I'll definitely tell Jolee what you said." _

"Thanks, bud, and another thing. I want you to round up the crew and head to the ship-I don't want to have to see Roland's face any more times then I have to. Get the engines warmed up too because after my hundredth trial, I'm too ecstatic about leaving this damn water planet."

"_Not too excited, I'm sure. Our next stop is Korriban: Sith galore." _

"Yeah, there's a reason why I made it the last stop on this little trip of ours. I just plan to get through whatever we'll have to do quickly, get the Star Map, and leave the rock just as fast."

"_You do know "we'll" can't include Bastila, right?" _

"I wish that I was that naive; it's one thing that's been on my mind ever since we arrived on this planet. Korriban has far too many sith and we can't take the chance of one of them knowing who she is…no matter how much I hate the fact that she's gonna be stuck up on the ship during the whole time that we're down there."

"_Yeah…this is gonna be the first time that the two of you haven't been together on this mission since before we found her on Taris. That's gotta be hard on you-especially with that bond of yours." _

"It won't be fun, but…it's a sacrifice I have to make to get the last Star Map and finally find this Star Forge place so this whole thing will be over. Um…" Kaleb trailed, not really liking the conversation they were having, "another thing Carth. Could you grab my bag and guitar out of my room in the Embassy? I really didn't have time to pick it up and, like I said, I really don't want anymore pit stops to that place."

"_No prob. See you soon."_ The pilot replied and the screen to the com went black.

Kaleb sighed once again as he replaced the device back into his pocket. It just seemed like everything on this mission was against him loving Bastila and now even a planet was separating the two of them. He didn't tell Carth, but Korriban was going to be close to unbearable without her to talk to and it was too much of a risk to try to communicate through their bond or even open it when some Sith could pick up the traces of Force. His eyes fell on Bastila who seemed to be in a deep pensive state herself as her bluish-grey orbs were slightly cloudy, as they usually were when she was in deep thought, to everything around her and fixed on a metallic wall. The man wondered about what she was thinking and was tempted to probe her mind, but he knew she would notice and didn't want to disturb her musings; they were going to talk later anyway, so…he would just have to wait until then-no matter how hard.

Kaleb's attention was gained once again when he saw Sunry enter the courtroom, two Selkath guards on either side, Elora, the Sith prosecutor that he was going up against, and all of the witnesses sit down in there appropriate places.

_**/Let the record show that the trial of Sunry vs. Ahto City Authority has commenced. Presiding are judges Shelkar…/**_

_**/Jhosa…/**_

Kaleb scoffed as the judges continued they're long entrances; waiting until it was his turn to talk.

_**/This trial is to determine the culpability of Sunry in the death of the Sith Elassa. Representing Sunry in his defense is a member of the Jedi Order./ **_

Said defense groaned when he heard the Selkath call him a Jedi.

**_/Do you have any opening statements?/ _**Shelkar directed to Kaleb.

"Why yes, yes I do. The truth of the matter is that Sunry is guilty of his crime of murder and I have this recording as proof." He told him as there was a slight murmur of shock among the courtroom from the man's statement as he took out his datapad.

Kaleb even had to sustain a chuckle when he saw the Sith's jaw drop with disbelief at what he had just done.

_**/A recording? Let this new evidence be entered in the records./ **_

One of the guards took his datapad and handed it to the judge in the middle so that they could review it.

**_/Ah…this evidence seems to be most convincing./ _**Naleshekan commented a little too eagerly.

**_/Yes. Yes, it seems to be./ _**Kota added.

Jolee had walked through the courtroom's opening without a sound and walked over to where Bastila was standing. The woman quickly looked up at the man; slightly startled from his sudden approach.

"Jolee…"

"Did the kid tell the truth?" The old Jedi asked her.

"Um…yes; he told the judges about the recording and said that Sunry was guilty. They're looking at Kaleb's datapad as we speak."

Jolee only nodded solemnly as his eyes turned back on trial.

_**/This shortens the trial considerably. In light of this new evidence there is no need to proceed with the witnesses or cross examinations. This court hereby finds Sunry guilty of the murder of the Sith Elassa. In accordance with Selkath law, the prescribed punishment is death./**_

"Hold up there, speedy, I didn't say that I was done with my statement yet and you don't want to miss the good part." He grinned slyly. "I would like to present a case that defends the reasons behind why Sunry should not be killed; I am his Arbiter, you know."

**_/This human dares to have the audacity to go against Selkath law?!/ _**Judge Naleshekan spit out nastily.

"And don't forget that he was the one who led you to this verdict in the first place, your honors!" The Sith prosecutor chimed in; not pleased at all that Sunry was about to get off the hook so easily for murder.

Kaleb used his hand to mock at all of their negative remarks. "How about all of you try to hear me out first before you make your judgments that I'm audacious or hypocritical? It is the least of _respect_ that you owe me." He concluded in a low tone as he eyed every judge on their stands.

Shelkar made a gurgling noise as he cleared his throat. **_/Very well; we will listen to your pleas, but the matter of if we will honor them or not remains to be seen./ _**

"This is in no way fair!" The Sith argued vehemently. "Why does he-"

**_/Silence! This is a ruling of the court and if you have one more outburst like that, you will immediately be thrown out./ _**

Kaleb smirked at the enraged man and mouthed the word "Sorry" before turning back to the Selkath. "Thanks, your honors. Now, I think that it's quite obvious that I believe that Sunry is guilty, but every crime has some sort of action that made it happen at all. No party in this case is _fully_ innocent. I ask that instead of putting Sunry to death, you banish him from this planet, so that he will cause you no more trouble-I know how much your kind desires peace. I also ask you to think of the consequences of his death on others and more importantly, you. It will surely lead to more fights with the Republic and sith on this planet and other unseen violence that could lead to more cases like this. As I'm sure all of you indisputably must know, two wrongs don't make a right-you don't want to learn this the hard way." He directed a hand to the prosecutor. "To appease the Sith from the lost of one of their comrades, I say that you punish the people who tried to hide the true facts of this case in the first place and who influenced Sunry's actions on that horrible day-the Republic Embassy right here on Manaan. I found that recording that you now have in your hand at their base."

_**/And this fitting punishment that you obviously think succeeds Selkath law, human?/ **_

"To place a 25 reduction on the kolto that the Republic can obtain from you. Seeing how this will cripple the Republic moderately and that I am the sole reason while there is still useable kolto on this planet; I think that it is a justified request."

The judge known as Kota nodded his head. **_/I applaud you for your impartiality, human, from your ties to your government, and for that, yes; we will grant you the release of Sunry to his swift exile from our planet of Manaan instead of death in exchange for the 25 reduction of kolto for the Republic Embassy. Are these terms acceptable to the Arbiter of the Sith?/ _**

The Sith nodded his head; knowing that even though Sunry wasn't going to die, having the Republic get less kolto then them was a great achievement.

**_/Very well then./ _**Shelkar concluded. **_/The verdict has been delivered and this trial is now over./ _**

The young man let out his longest sigh of the day as he saw Elora hurriedly hug Sunry tightly; overjoyed tears flowing down her cheeks while her husband was beaming. Even though Kaleb still didn't feel right about the whole verdict, he allowed himself to be happy for Elora. She had been through so much and even though he could not save their citizenship here, he had a feeling that she didn't and wouldn't care about where they would live, as long as it was with him.

He smiled as his eyes met the ceiling. _Mom…I did all of this for you. I hope that you're proud of me and the person that I've become…that you've gained some sort of peace from this._

"You know, you're something else, kid!" Jolee exclaimed with a huge wrinkled grin as he walked down the ramp and towards him. "You not only managed to tell the truth, but got Sunry out of his death penalty also. I don't know how you do it."

He chuckled nervously. "To tell you the truth, I don't know how I did it either. My nerves are a wreck and I'm surprised that I didn't piss on myself while I was giving that whole speech I had just come up with."

"Now's not the time to be modest-we have to celebrate our Arbiter's victory!" The smile suddenly faded from the old Jedi's mouth when he saw the gloomy expression on Kaleb's face. "You know, I really do wish that my old friend hadn't done this at all. It doesn't matter if the victim was a Sith or that he was a hero-what's wrong is wrong. And now the Republic has to suffer from what Sunry's done, which is a shame." He sighed. "He _used_ to be a good man, you know…once upon a time."

Kaleb felt tremendous pity for Jolee; knowing that he understood that people changed, but from all of the things that happened to him: his wife dying from his own actions because she turned to the dark side when he couldn't save her from it, which he had to believe was his fault since he taught her to use the Force in the first place, and the jedi council saying that such a grievous thing was only a hard lesson for him to learn from. And now it seemed that the one good friend he had from the past had again repeated history and become a bad person.

"But enough of that, this is supposed to be a happy occasion and Carth told me that you were ready to get off of this waterlogged planet. I'm personally ready to leave anytime that you are."

The young man nodded as Jolee was about to make his way up to the exit, but was intercepted by a smiling Elora.

"I know that the two of you didn't think that you could leave without me thanking you?" She asked while she embraced the old Jedi in a hug. "Thank you, Jolee. You always were a wonderful friend."

"It was no problem, Elora, but you should really be thanking the kid next to me. He did all of the work."

"Of course." The woman replied as she let him go and hugged Kaleb just as tightly. "I can only imagine what it was like standing up there defending Sunry, but you did an excellent job."

"Thank you, but_…Elora_," He whispered into her ear, "_why do you still love Sunry after all he's done_?"

"Hmm…I know you must think me silly for saying this, but I truly love him with all my heart, despite how much of a battle it is. And no matter how much it hurts to deeply care for the man, to be with him…_is life itself_ and anything that's not _him_…just _cannot_ be." Elora loosed her grip on him as she backed away. "But maybe you do understand…_I see it in your eyes too when you look at that young lady up there_." She whispered the last part.

Kaleb automatically blushed as she thanked him one last time before walking back to Sunry and Jolee shook his head as he walked out of the area to head for the ship.

The young man desperately tried to return to his normal color before he went to meet Bastila, but knew he failed when she smiled inquisitively.

"Hm, I must admit that I'm interested in what Elora said that made you so horribly red."

"_Huh_…" That irritating smirk appeared on his lips as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "Just something I already knew about the two of us, Miss. Nosy."

She glanced at his arm and then back at him suspiciously, even though her body was already enjoying the warmth his produced; not liking the haughty expression he donned. "So, you telling me is in no way being nosy since I'm included in this "us" you speak of."

"I wouldn't have it any other way, but I can't give you all of the details like I would personally_ love_ to because of our location…but let's just say that it's everything you should already know."

"Really?" She frowned as they passed the Selkath guards who were in front of the courtroom's entrance. "Then maybe you can tell me why you're still distressed after you won that case back there because that's something I truly don't know."

"_Damn_, nothing gets past you…" Kaleb took in a deep breath and quickly let it out. "It's just that…I used to be a soldier, right? I know how it is to be out on that battlefield not knowing if today is your last or not, but that sanction…that's gonna hurt those innocent soldiers badly when they did nothing to deserve it. Malak and his forces are already closing in on the Core worlds and now…thousands of people are going to die just because it seemed justified to help this man not die when he's guilty."

Bastila shook her head. "Kaleb, you're being far too hash on yourself. I won't lie to you…there will be losses, but that is a thing that unfortunately accompanies anything as gruesome of a monster as war. _But_ you have managed to achieve a great hardship-to be true to yourself by admitting that Sunry was guilty and have enough compassion to also not walk away when the Selkath judges stated his imminent death sentence. You fought for his freedom, even if it was only in exile, and saved Elora's heart in the process." She paused as she looked away from him. "I believe that I now understand that you saving her love was…actually worth such a setback and," She smiled warmly as she gazed into his eyes once more. "I want you to know how personally proud of you I am of your impressive decision. It must have taken a great amount of courage to defend your claims in front of all of those authoritarian judges."

Her open admiration made his heart leap from joy; her acceptance of his choice making it seem like it was the best thing in the galaxy, if only for the time being.

He scratched the back of his head as his eyes met the ground diffidently. "Aw come on, Bas…I'm losing man points from all this blushing."

She grinned from how pleasant it was that he colored from her influence. "Well, far be it from me to take such a necessity, but…" The woman teasingly pinched his red stained cheek, "you're just _so_ _cute_ when you're embarrassed."

"Yeah, well…" He trailed as he playfully swatted her hand away, amused from her jibe. "I would prefer _sexy_."

She laughed as they continued walking, "I bet you would."

He smiled, as even he was a bit surprised on how easy it was for her to pacify his troubles with mere words.

"Seeing Elora happy…" The man continued, "It was like being able to do the same for my mom, you know? It just felt so good to see that another woman wouldn't have to go through the pain she did from unrequited love."

The realization that they still had to finish their talk reared its ugly head from his comment and Bastila stopped walking before they went through the door leading to the Central Courtyard.

Kaleb's footfalls immediately halted too as he looked back at her concerned. _Things were going so well…we were normal again…_

"You alright?"

The woman took a shaky breath. "I promised you that I would finish our discussion after your trial was over and…I intend to do so, but this is not the place for it. Could you…bear with me a second longer and have this discussion in the privacy of the Ebon Hawk? I would desire not having any more interruptions when I tell you this."

A pathetic excuse in her eyes that clearly showed her desire to scramble for more time before their discussion, but one that she would hoped he would permit.

"I can agree with that and besides, I was planning on going there anyway since Carth probably gathered everyone. We can start our trip to the last planet on this mission while we talk."

She nodded as her stomach began to sink with every step she took while the two of them exited the area and headed to the holding bays.

--------------------------------------

Kaleb softly groaned in his mind from physical and spiritual exhaustion as he walked up the loading ramp to the Ebon Hawk, followed closely behind by his anxious bond-mate, but yelped in surprise when he saw a blue blur flash by as his mind registered that Mission was hugging him.

"Kaleb! You're back!" She exclaimed merrily as she let him go; grinning from ear to ear. "It seems like forever since the last time I saw you!"

"Yeah…" He admitted as he ran his hand through his dirty blond hair, seeing the whole crew in the eating area except Zalbaar and the droids. "Sorry about that, I didn't mean-"

"It doesn't matter," The teen interrupted. "I'm just glad that you're ok. I was so worried when I heard that you had been poisoned."

"Sure the girl was." Canderous confirmed, with a twisted grin. "But that little speech that the Princess gave you before you went out really eased some worries. Too bad nothing serious developed."

Carth laughed. "That's right-I almost forgot about all of that! Kaleb, you old dog, I'm disappointed with you."

The young man confusedly glanced at Bastila, whose cheeks were flushed a slight pink and then back at the Mandalorian and pilot. "Wait-how do you know about-" He stopped and glared daggers at Jolee. "_Old man_?!" He questioned warningly.

"Don't you "_old_ _man_" me, dammit! It was far too good of a chance to pass up and your crew was worried about your safety, so I wanted to inform them that everything was under control."

"Inform them?" Bastila asked, finally speaking up as soon as she recovered from her discomfiture. "How and with what?"

"The kid's comlink of course. They got a real good view of you and your boyfriend's parting words while I tried not to become sick from the whole thing. Besides, without some amusement, I would have withered off and died from how long the two of you were taking."

"_But-That's not-it-you can't do that_!" He sputtered indignantly. "That's invasion of privacy!"

"Then maybe you would like to explain why you need some private moments with Bastila anyway, so we all won't be so curious." The aged man retorted.

Kaleb put his pointer finger up as his mouth opened to reply, but it suddenly fell limp. "_I_…huh…Bas?"

She rolled her eyes from his attempt, or lack thereof. "It's not that they're private, but it would be nice to know that we had an audience!"

"Well, whatever-that's not important." Mission interjected. "I was told that you just won an amazingly hard trial just now."

"Right, I did, and as you can all imagine, I'm _really_ beat so I'm just gonna head to my room and-"

"Oh no you don't!" Carth directed at him as he tried to leave; giving his friend a mock stern look. "I know how much you complained about not being able to relax, so Jolee and I decided to throw a little down time your way."

"Yeah, kid, it's the least I can do to repay you back for helping Sunry."

"That's sweet you guys and I'm touched, really, but it's not necessary."

"Nonsense!" Canderous exclaimed as he roughly slapped his hand on Kaleb's shoulder. "We'll kick back, quaff down some juma, and light a cigarra or two-"

"Or a whole box." The pilot added amused.

"Now you're speaking my language! And all of that will be topped off with a game of Pazaak. It's about damn time we've had a boy's night anyway!"

The young Twi'lek scoffed. "Yeah, you boys drink yourselves into a stupor so we can take pictures and record holovids, but in the meantime…" Mission clutched Bastila's arm. "If you boy's get a night then I think it's only fair that we do too."

"Oh no…Mission I really can't-" The woman started.

"Uh-uh, I'm not taking no for an answer this time, Bastila. When was the last time we've actually spent quality time together?"

"Well…"

"Exactly-never! Now, I suggest, for your own good, that you come with me and have some fun before I guilt you to death." She smiled broadly, "I've become pretty darn good at it, if I do say so myself."

"Mission, I have to do something else that's of the utmost importance-"

"Nope, heard the excuse before and if it isn't about what we're going to do tonight, I don't wanna hear it again."

"But-"

"No!" The girl told her with firm finality as she dragged her towards her room. "Come on, Juhani; you're coming too."

The Cathar just sighed as she followed the group. "I am right behind you."

-----------------------------

"Ok." Carth gulped nervously. "Hit me."

Jolee slowly flipped the card over as everyone's eyes, except Kaleb's, were on it.

"…5!" The old man announced.

"Arg, _dammit_-bust!"

Canderous's laugh was muffled as he took the cigarra out of his mouth. "Seems like flyboy here doesn't know when to hold! I only had 17!"

"Yeah, yeah." He grumbled as he flicked the hundred credit chip over to the Mandalorian. "Just take your money and shut-up."

"Gladly." Canderous commented snidely as he placed the cigarra back in his mouth; blowing smoke out the side of lips.

Carth snorted. "Kaleb, please tell me that you have something that can wipe the smirk off this guy's face."

The young man was abruptly broken out of his deep thoughts when he heard his name. "What happened to who what now?"

"Your cards, Kaleb-what do you have?"

"Oh yeah…" He trailed flatly as he lifted them up quickly.

"A twenty!" All of the other men exclaimed, but with varying emotions

"Hm, how 'bout that?" Kaleb replied indifferently.

"What do you mean, "how 'bout that?"-you just won over a hundred with all of our creds combined!" The pilot exclaimed in amazement that he could be so nonchalant.

"Yay." The younger man responded just as dispassionately, and then yawned.

"Are you serious? That's your only reply?" Carth threw his cards on the table. "Hey…I'm out until this game gets interesting or Kaleb imbibes some more juma." He stood up. "Besides, I need to see how much longer we have until we reach Korriban-not that I'm rushing it or anything. A planet chock full of Sith…" He shivered in disgust as he made his way to the control room. "Where's some Tarisian ale when you need it?"

Canderous looked at Kaleb questioningly. "What's wrong with you? Winning isn't enough of a thrill?"

He sighed. "No…it's just like I said before; I'm just really tired and I wanna-"

"Just get some sleep?" Jolee finished for him knowingly. "Well…you could be telling the truth, but I know that look you have anywhere. You're preoccupied with something, and that something is Bastila-you're painfully obvious."

"The Princess?" Canderous snorted. "I had a feeling that there was something going on between the two of you. She's usually so feisty, but now she's tame whenever you're around her-definitely no small feat. Hm, congratulations are definitely in order for that one."

Kaleb tried to restrain the creeping grin on his lips at the mention of his bond-mate's name as he rose up from his chair and just shrugged. "Really? I didn't notice." The young man left the room with a two-fingered wave. "But I am so gosh darn tired, I could've missed it, definitely."

-------------------------------

Bastila let out an extended sigh as she felt Mission's hands pulling rollers out of her hair. The teen had said something about "this is what girls are supposed to do" and "you'll love it when I'm done, so stop complaining" and the Jedi was far too exhausted to argue with her, knowing that there was no way out of this time consuming event. Her bluish-grey orbs fell on Mission's other quiet hostage and she suddenly felt a rather large pang of guilt. It had occurred to her that she had never made any real effort to get to know Juhani and just assumed that she wanted to be alone when she saw her in solitude.

"So," The Twi'lek suddenly started again; trying to get some conversation flowing, "like I was saying, we girls need to find more things to do together. We all know that it can be tough being stuck with so many men on one ship for these horribly long periods of time."

"I disagree." Juhani chimed in, with that thick Cathar accent. "The men on this ship are very respectable, who, yes, do have their moments, but if I had to do this mission with anybody, it would be with them."

"Well, yeah; I never said that they didn't have their charms, but like you said, even they do some trying things sometimes." Mission rebutted with a raised eyebrow as she used a comb to make a part and draw Bastila's hair down on the right side of her face. "Canderous with his continuous posturing that he's a big, bad Mandalorian, Jolee and his ancient stories that happened before there even was a galaxy and Carth with his elusiveness about his past except that he wants to kill this Saul person. It can get tiring to have drama central after a while." She scoffed. "I mean would it be too much to ask to have a normal crew where everybody's life was dandy? I don't know about you, but this ship is dysfunction junction."

"And what about Kaleb?" The words seemed to flow out Bastila's mouth without her even noticing her saying of them, or before she could stop them.

The teen smiled as she unfurled another roller to make a bouncy curl in Bastila's brown locks. "Of course, Kaleb's an exception-he's been that older brother that I couldn't have and I can't think of a time on this mission where he was annoying."

_Force, he is perfect isn't he? _The Jedi thought as a smile appeared on her face.

"Oh, that's right!" Mission suddenly exclaimed, "Yesterday, I came up with the idea that we should make some records of our journey in a datapad-you know, preserve for future generations and bring it out when we're all bored or something so we can all laugh later. I already told everyone else about it and I meant to tell you this yesterday, Bastila, but I couldn't find you anywhere last night." She wrapped the left side of her hair around her ear. "I was about to go to that room you were sharing with Kaleb at the Embassy, but I heard a lot of screaming and groaning so I just turned around-I definitely didn't want to get caught up in the middle of whatever the two of you were doing."

Bastila turned as crimson as a Sith's saber when she heard her words; hoping with every fiber in her being that she wouldn't ask what she thought the teen would next.

"What were the two of you doing in there anyway?" Mission continued; the Force deaf to her pleas. "It sounded like someone was in a lot of pain with all the moaning and shouts I heard."

_Damn! _"It's…w-well, you see, we were having a…fight. Yes-that's it-because Kaleb did something incredibly dumb…"

_Hardly _A voice inside her head countered. _It was absolutely the best thing he's done by far…_

"And…we were screaming at each other" _From unimaginable pleasure _"and then, um…" She hesitated, "I threw my lightsaber at him…" _More like he stuck his in you _"T-that was the, uh…groans of pain and moaning-that's all there was to it."

"You hit him with your lightsaber?" She asked shocked as she started loosening the curls to finish the hairstyle. "Wow, Bastila, you're relentless."

"Yes; I'm horrible." The woman quickly stood up as soon as Mission was done, her blushing epidemic worsening by the second. "In fact, I think an apology is an order-it's the least he deserves."

Without another word, the Jedi rushed through the door and closed it as the other two were beyond confused at her hasty retreat.

---------------------------------

Kaleb sighed as his eyes scanned Bastila's room, but the area currently held no Bastila.

"I thought for sure that she would have found a way out by now…" The man trailed disappointed, as he pushed a button to close the door.

He had been trying to find the woman for at least five minutes now, but saw no signs of her at all in his search. The man didn't understand; it was never this difficult to find her before…_Duh! _

Kaleb almost smacked himself from how stupid he was. "We have a bond, idiot."

/_My wittle sugarbear_?/He called out to her, and abruptly felt a wave of aggravation and edginess coursing through their bond.

/I'm gonna let you live for now. Where are you?/ She asked impatiently.

/Hey, I usually love it when you get feisty like this, but I just checked your room to see if you were there and guess what? You weren't-where are _you_?/

/Hold on…/There was a brief pause. /I'm talking to Zalbaar./

Kaleb was bewildered. /Since when have you talked to him?/

/First of all, I don't particularly like the way you said that. Second, I didn't mean to at all-it just sort of…happened. I had just managed to escape Mission and Juhani, and then I saw Zalbaar in a corner looking so desolate and abandoned; I had to ask him what was wrong./

/Well, I think I'm a bit needier of your attention then he is, Bas./ He told her with an irritated tone. /I want to talk with you now-all this waiting is killing me./

Another break in the conversation.

--------------------------------

"Really?" Bastila asked Zalbaar with half-hearted concern, as she put Kaleb on hold. "You think that you did the wrong thing by leaving Kashyyyk when it's in such a fragile state?"

"**It is not so much that I feel bad about my decision." **The Wookie answered. "**I have a life debt to Kaleb and I intend to honor it with everything that I am. My father and people understand this and I know that he is more than capable to be chieftain, but…to not be there physically at such an important time…I fear that I will once again be an outsider to my people if I returned." **

"Oh, Zalbaar, don't be silly. You're the main reason why they were able to reach such a state of peace, so I'm sure that they will welcome you back willingly."

"**I wish I shared your confidence…"**

------------------------------------

/Are you ignoring me?/Kaleb questioned huffily. /Should I get some freakin' hold music while I wait?/

/…I'm in the middle of a conversation, if you've forgotten./Bastila unexpectedly shot back./Do you even know how hard it is to do so when someone else is ranting in your head?/

/Ugh, whatever…just, please, wrap it up with Zalbaar. Actually, even better plan; tell me exactly where you are so I can be your scapegoat to get out of there./

/Um…to tell you the truth, I truly don't know-I've never been in this area of the Ebon Hawk before. Somewhere close to Mission's room./

/Gosh, Bas, I love how you're so specific!/He remarked sarcastically. /How can you not know where you are? You've been on this ship for how long now?/

/You know what? Just for that, I think I'll ask Zalbaar how his day was./

/Oh, come on! I was only…aw, dammit!/Kaleb exclaimed as he saw two glowing fiery orange orbs that belonged to HK head toward him. /Something out there really hates me, Bas, because it's throwing everything it's got in my way./

/What's the matter?/

/HK alert: and he looks like he has something important to say. Maybe he's gonna tell me about what he killed while all of us were away…/

/I'm sorry./She sighed. /I didn't know that it would take this long to talk to you. I'll try to reach you as fast as I can./

/Yeah…/

The man closed his eyes as their conversation ended; preparing himself for his newest one with the assassin droid.

_Greeting: There you are, Master. I have been looking all over this ship for you to inform you on my excitement of our future landing on Korriban. _

"Let me guess," Kaleb said tiredly, "you're happy because of all the sith you'll be able to kill?"

_Blatant Answer: Why, of course, Master. Should there be any other reason? _

"How about finding the last Star Map?"

_Dismissive Statement: Only a minor detail that you should not concern yourself with. You have collected these maps all over on other planets already-do you think yourself not proficient enough to apprehend one more? _

"That's definitely not the problem, but I would love it if I didn't have to go to this planet in the first place. I got a real bad feeling creeping over me and that's never a good thing." He shrugged, as if tossing the feeling aside for now. "Probably just nerves since we're so close to completing this mission. Anyway, now that I answered your question, I need to be going." He concluded as he started to make his way past the droid, but HK-47 didn't budge.

_Query: You seem considerably distraught, if not annoyed, Master. Is there someone or something you wish me to eliminate to ease your worries? _

"No, HK, I already explained that no one on this ship is to be harmed." Kaleb shook his head. "Don't mind me; I'm just going through some internal conflict."

_Query: Do you mean your conflict has something to do with emotions? _It asked with unrestrained revulsion. _I am definitely not the one to come to for such a basic problem, Master. I personally thought you would know better by now. _

"Who said that I was coming to you for help?" The man asked testily.

_Answer: There is no need to get cross, Master. I was just suggesting that you find another source to relay your emotions on. Perhaps one of the many meatbags on this vessel who share the same defects? Extrapolation: Maybe the one you call your "bond-mate". I have seen you confer with her for comfort and approval many times. _

Kaleb flushed slightly as he rolled his eyes. "Whatever, just move out the way."

_Observation: I have detected that your heart rate has spiked noticeably, Master, and that you have paled. Is this because I have mentioned the female Jedi meatbag or do you need medical attention? _

"Leave me alone, HK!" He exclaimed, infuriated beyond belief from his galling comments. "And while you're at it, go into standby mode for the rest of the night."

The droid sounded a mechanical sigh and turned around. _Answer: As you wish, Master. I will be in the equipment room if you need further assistance. _

HK-47 continued to head in the opposite direction as the man turned around himself to continue his hunt.

Kaleb walked through the short halls of the Ebon Hawk, frustration gathering in his eyes from not being able to find Bastila, but face impassive as ever.

_Lately, that seems to be happening more and more often…my emotions are running rapid, but it's like my body hides it from everyone…everyone, but Bas that is._

With those thoughts and a deep sigh, he turned himself rightward, uncaring which room he ended up and which conversation he need partake in just so he could hurriedly get out of it.

_Can't the two of us just get some alone time? Is that seriously too much to ask? _

Suddenly every nerve in his relaxed body shot up as if a blaster blot had been fired at his face. Without conscience thought, his lightsabers were at hand-activating their blue illuminations around the dark room. Sighing to himself again, he wondered if it was too late to just drink down the whole jug of juma juice or ale before either Canderous or Carth got their hands on it. It was that same feeling again-the sensation that some darkness was closing in on him, some overwhelming sense of dread, and he couldn't escape it.

_Is it because we're going to Korriban…or something else? _

Deactivating the twin sabers, his eyes glided across the fleeting light taking in the small corridor of the vessel as his feet listlessly followed suit. His line of sight caught the shadowy gloom that stretched before him and the coldness that waited behind.

Space…more specifically, these gaps in front and behind him, further exaggerated the almost infinite amount between him and his love. It was forced on him and it was this fact that angered him most-he, the problem solver and go-to-guy, could do nothing to fix this dilemma, but try to kill time.

_Infuriation…_

Waves of energy, blind to the untrained eye yet tangible, arced and roared about the stalking figure, as Kaleb continued to navigate the constricted hallways of the Ebon Hawk. The galaxy itself shuddered and quaked as every step he took brought him closer to one point and further from another; his ankle high boots making not a sound as muscled arms swayed rhythmically to his moving body. His golden orbs blazed with the fury of an indescribable god-like energy; unlimited and unrelenting as it grew inside the man and burned his core.

He would tear this ship apart if he was denied his time with her much longer.

Bastila Shan was detained, removed, occupied at the moment and wouldn't appreciate him abruptly ending any dialogue she was engaged in by scooping her over his shoulder and carrying her away. Or at least…those were the thoughts that he kept chastising himself with. Kaleb's soul beckoned, the power stirring inside impatient for release, begged for him to take what was his, what he sure as hell earned, and whom he pledged unparalleled devotion to.

_No… _The man told himself for what seemed like the hundredth time, ignoring the angry, but candid commands of the voice inside his head from his disgraceful inaction. _No, she is already mine…I'll…I just have to wait._

But his body wanted its own satisfaction, as it didn't lie to its instincts. It sought her skin, her touch, her voice, her face.

Memories of Bastila spread out on top of those dark sheets of the Republic embassy bed, ran though his mind. The beads of sweat at their joining and their unified moans of ecstasy animating his entire being: blood rushing from every part in his body and swelling to reside in his masculine organ. More flashes of temptation-his woman breathing hard beneath him, her brown hair spread out across soft, full pillows; raising her head so that her own eyes could scan his frame and drink in every crevice that he possessed. His name being screamed from overwhelming gratification as he sought to continually please her as he so expertly did.

And then reality swiftly came as he stopped walking. It wasn't the voice inside him or every fiber in his being wanting to sate this winning need, but that his olive pants were now much more constricted around the crotch then they were supposed to be.

Kaleb's face paled drastically. _This is ok to have when I'm alone, but when I'm in the middle of a corridor where anyone could spot me…I'd never hear the end of it._

He slowly turned around, with caution to any surprise guests, as he sought to damper his lust once more. Suddenly seeing a door, he reached for it; remembering the area instantly when it opened.

_FLASH_ memories of Bastila sobbing.

The cold, bleak room echoed with the soft sniffles of her crying to herself as he ventured in.

_FLASH_ Kaleb holding out her dragon pearl necklace in an attempt to make her happy.

Memories of pain, hurt, condolence, acceptance, and undiscovered love…

_FLASH_ him embarrassed beyond belief as she hugged him tightly for the first time as a reward for his astounding consideration.

All of the emotions breathed through the walls and told their side of the story. His memories of Bastila's words that very night on the sand dunes proved wrong by time, love, patience…him. He basked in an inner glow, knowing that his choices-no matter how hard at the time-had finally bore fruit and took pride in this accomplishment. His love for her never diminishing or retreating and it finally being able to take its proper place in her own heart.

Stepping through the threshold, Kaleb allowed the visions of the past to float within him and to flow outside of him; no longer caring to stop his bond from opening, his rapture far too strong. Pools of memories, from Taris, Dantooine, Tatooine, Kashyyyk, and Manaan of every word, gesture, touch, and emotion, no matter how faint or strong at the time, broke through the barrier.

The man's arms began moving with neither call nor impulse as he followed the sensations; each one having their own ribbon of color. Like water they transformed from one form to another, always in flux as other memories began to pierce the soft barricade of his mind. His legs soon followed his arms in their rebellion to perform such a raw katra.

Slight words, whispers of impulses glistened just beyond his eyes: closed and swept in emotion turmoil, yet with a single anchor. Shouts of words soon hushed to whispers. Orders of revolt quieted to dust. Kaleb's body remembered power, near total power, once buried in white, searing flame, burning all who were irrational enough to attempt some plan to stop him; then in black, cold ice, were not even death seemed to be able to catch up to him. Each sought control, territory, and obedience from his body. His mind wrapped and warped from attitudes, orders, friends, enemies, battles, images. Lives flashed before his eyes and were taken away just as recklessly. Blindly, Kaleb followed none, but forged his own path as he did before; each calling out to him, but no answer resonating back.

Only one would ever command him now, only one would every hold him at bay or unleash him. Not the white flame, not the black ice.

But only her_…/Bastila/. _

--------------------------------------------

A quiet sound unexpectedly reverberated throughout his bond-mate's mind while she was attempting to locate him. A solitary word, but the feeling that accompanied it so deep, that she was drowning in a deluge of that man's love.

/_Kaleb_./She thought back immediately.

Hours of separation had done nothing to mollify her thirst and hunger to see him, to be with him…to tell him the truth and still see the same amount of love fill his eyes. Along with these emotions transferred through their matured bond, also came swarms of visions and murmurs from his past. The tapestry of his memories seemed to be sewing themselves back together, slowly, but surely; trying to once again reassemble the person he once was…is: Revan.

A deep pain shot across her chest and brought focus back to the woman's eyes. The very thought of something, someone taking him away or worse, hearing the truth from another source, haunted her.

A flurry of movement was all that was seen, blurs that would surprise even Jedi Masters of the Council as she maneuvered around the ship. Through their connection, Bastila's own power had grown: their tie to each other deepening and bringing them a level of comfort neither had previously known nor desired to let go.

Power without control. Control without power. Two halves of a whole were molding themselves together and enhancing both.

Bastila's mind was filled with images that ran like an ancient reel of film from the very deepest of Jedi archives. A planet of humans had once developed this method to record their findings and entertainment, a history lesson Bastila would not forget for it was the first time that another had called her "Princess" with disdain in their voice. So callous with their cruel nickname that it stabbed her heart for she found it pleasing and knew her father would have enjoyed such a find also. That lesson, she recalled with bitter remorse, that girl…Bastila had no idea what had happened to her rival in the class, but waves of angry and pulses of detestation surged through her.

_She had truly hated someone…there were even times when she wished for the girl's own murder._

Coming to halt, Bastila had not even known where that train of thought had come from. Yes, the Council had also commented on her emotional state, but she had never wished death upon any of her friends…no, fellow co-workers-knights of the Order or Republic. Heat flooded her cheeks as her vision turn red and another surge of resentment swelled within her bosom. Hate, vengeance, anger, all swirled inside her being and sought revenge on many who had offended her. The numerous Jedi back at the enclave who thought her a vain princess without care for others, the various soldiers she had met that thought of her as an object to be used for only her Battle Meditation-thinking nothing of the person behind the ability, and the thousands of men who looked at her body as a lustful creation existing only for their pleasure. Hate for them burned her to the core as she was washed in unadulterated power.

_Was this Revan's influence? No…Kaleb._

At the single name of her desire, her lust, her belonging, her lover, her friend, her confident-he had been the only one who had actually fought to see who she really was, what she was truly like. Heat bloomed in her bosom and her body became full of need; area between her thighs already moist with yearning. Shivering from this awesome hunger, Bastila neither knew where she was nor how she came to be in this area, but her body moved towards this place without her realizing it.

To the right of her laid a single door. The detached, metal object gave no indication to the room's contents, yet Bastila knew of one thing that waited inside. Again, without rational thought, she activated the door; it sliding away to reveal a lone occupant. An extremely handsome male, covered in a fine sheet of sweat.

His polo was pealed off gleaming skin and brought over his head to be tossed aside with his discarded leather jacket on the floor; revealing a white beater that had been underneath. Muscles rippled with each movement of his arms, firm limbs with strength and unknown definition. He soon turned to face her, seeming finished with his previous action.

His arms fell limply to his side, yet still held an almost unbearable amount of power. His mouth slowly created a predatory smirk as Bastila took a small step backwards only to find her back to a shut door; its hinges seemed blocked from access by some unknown force.

The man's closed eyes began to open-swarms of energy: unkempt, raw energy danced mischievously in those golden orbs.

Was it even possible to see Kaleb and Revan in the same person at the same time? This creature seemed to have both unbeatable guile in its tactics and irrefutable arrogance in their success, combined. Would she survive this encounter?

"_Bas_…" The man trailed sensually as the once tense muscles in his body relaxed somewhat. "You were finally able to get away?" His tone feigned innocence, but those eyes held the truth as they clung to naughtier secrets.

"Yes, well…" She trailed, as visions of the pleasures he could bring her were soon replaced by the sight of his defined chest, easily showing through the thin cloth that covered it. "I didn't want to keep you waiting too long for our talk."

His ears hardly received the transmission as his golden orbs were already too busy ravaging her body themselves. With every step he advanced toward her, he could feel it more and more-so instinctual, so animalistic and all melting into his own personal Force waves that stretched themselves to caress hers as his hands longed to, but he would engage in this small talk…for now.

"You're hair…" Kaleb trailed with an indescribable emotion that only released a positive of awe. "Did Mission do this to you?"

"Yes." A firm tone replied to him, but deep inside, she knew that every stare heightened her senses, but…her mind was set on talking to him and wouldn't be distracted. "And since you've asked me a question, I'll assume that I can do the same for you." Bastila side stepped towards him, gliding her hand across his cheek and turning his line of direction to her resolute eyes. "Can we talk?"

He met her move and positioned his hand on top of hers; squeezing it gently. "We already are, my dear. I thought it was obvious that you have my _full_ and _undivided_ attention." His hand smoothly transitioned from her hand, across her face, and into her hair; fingers running through its soft curls slowly. "This really does suit you…and here I was thinking that you couldn't get any sexier."

"T-thank you, Kaleb." The woman stammered for only a second from his compliment, but berated herself for even that slight waver, knowing that he now held the upper hand-but she was determined in not letting him keep it for long.

"No, thank you darling," He rejoined smoothly as he now played with another curl, "for having the ability to amaze me every time I see you."

Bastila took in a slow, deep breath and dragged his hand from her dark locks to her mouth; where she tenderly blew out warm air, instantaneously heating him up.

"Now, now…if you keep distracting me, we won't get the chance to discuss _other_ things." His hand hid the small smile that was brought out from his reaction to her words.

Force, if it was even possible, he was getting turned on even more from her resistance to his advances-the fact that she was so hard to get making his desire skyrocket.

Kaleb's fingers deftly maneuvered over her soft lips, feeling every indentation that his mouth was not allowed to meet just yet. "But you are the only and most interesting topic that comes to mind." His eyes bore into hers as he knew this made her pulse race madly, with or without her consent. "Like how that accent of yours drives me mad…Come on, Bas. Let me hear it again."

The simple feeling of his hard-worn fingers on her lips sent her blood boiling; the heat radiating off her body, she was sure, would melt them both. "_What do you want me to say, dear, that we have other things to talk about_?" She repeated, but this time in a hushed, sultry manner.

The woman soon realized, as a provocative smirk was plastered on his face from her reply, she was playing a very dangerous game that could entrap her within those golden pools until she would no longer have the strength to tell her lover the truth.

"Kaleb, do me a small favor…and then, I'll let you do _anything _you will with me." The smile of a seductress trespassed on her lips.

_Hmm…her acceptance was far too easy-a trap. _"You know that I would do anything to you-I mean…" His smirk widened, "_For_ you." Kaleb took a half-step toward her, body heat already rising. "What do you wish, Bas? For me to kiss you? Hold you? Squeeze you until everything you feel is only us?"

"Why, Kaleb…if I didn't know any better, I would think that you were trying to seduce me." Bastila replied, realizing that even though her body was on fire, her plan was already set in motion.

"Oh, Bas, I'm not trying a damn thing." He finally closed the small gap between them as he lowered his fingers from her lips and slowly traced the outline of a regal jaw. "I _am_ seducing you…you can only resist for so long."

"_Mmmm_…" Bastila moaned, before closing her mouth and giving him a naive smile. "I know you are, love, but you see, you have yet to agree to my request." She pointed out as her finger traced against the ridges of his barely clothed pecs. "And until you do, I'm afraid that I can't give in to this hard, _aching_ body of yours…unless, of course…" She trailed, leaving him an ultimatum; one which she hoped Kaleb would meet as she couldn't keep this up much longer.

The woman quickly turned away from him and took a step forward as he watched, with slight shock, her unexpected action. But even the shock had taken second base, as the heat from her previously touching her fingers against his chest lingered and sent furious tingles to his abdomen and beyond.

He mock cleared his throat to mask a groan from their sensations. "So…"

Kaleb paused before turning around to face her, swearing that his body wouldn't show just how much she was making him lose his senses. This was all a competition, if not a dirty one, of endurance and he would prove that he could make her crave him more-until she couldn't stand it.

"What's this request of yours?"

Immediately turning around, Bastila's eyes lit up with both pride and victory as her trap had been successfully triggered. "Well, it's nothing much…just that I want both us to have a serious conversation about something that I desperately need to tell you about-that means no touching, Kaleb."

"_No fair_…" He pouted adorably, with his bottom lip stuck out. "That's no fun, Bas." The man scoffed internally from that look in her eyes that told him she had won.

_Nobody said this was over. _"I think me wanting to express my love to you is a serious topic in its own right and if you will not feel my love, I will make you hear it." He concluded as he came closer to the woman, a devious grin set on his mouth.

Bastila stared at those lips, longing for them to meld with hers in that perfect kiss: that wonderful bliss.

_No. _She mentally chastised herself as she stumbled back slightly.

"Um, Kaleb…do me another favor and stand on the other side of the room for me." She ordered as a faint blush colored her cheeks.

"Now, why would I want to go and do something like that, my little blushie poo?"

"Because you love me and would listen to whatever I say?" She questioned back rhetorically as she tried to calm down to remove the red staining from her face.

"And since you love me for loving you, our love is the thing that's keeping me here." He sniggered furtively. "Why don't you wanna feel my love, Bas?"

"Kaleb, I do feel you love, its encompassing me, so I need some air to just take a small breather. You do want to talk and get on to other activities don't you?" She replied getting the slightest bit annoyed. _Cocky bastard. _

"First of all, I heard that-not nice, Bas. It was…" He rubbed the corner of his eye, "_very_ hurtful."

"I'm sorry, but…" The woman sighed, "…with everything going on, I feel like my emotions are all over the place, but, yes, we really should talk." She ended in a somber mood at her previous thoughts.

"Aw, how could I not forgive you, Bas?"

_Besides, you can't help it that my body being so close to yours clouds your thinking. _He thought with a wicked smirk as he honored her request and started to back away-this game would be all the more fun because of it.

The man didn't even turn around as he ambled backwards, a seductive look in his eyes. "Speaking of this room though, you must remember what happened in this one?"

"I do." Came her strong and vibrant response as she was already more stable while he wasn't so near, but, internally, she wanted badly for him to return.

His rock-hard body against her soft curves: he was the only one who made her feel like a woman.

_Wait, _she thought, gaining focus once again, _what did he mean by that remark? _

Taking a look around the area, Bastila's heart to began to race, not in heat, but from worry, regret, and fear.

"_This room_…" The woman replied, but nowhere near as confidently as before, "yes, here is where you gave me my necklace." She fondled the precious silver sphere as if emphasizing her point, "Here is…where I lost my father." She concluded softly as the events from Tatooine played in her mind again; causing brief flashes of anguish and sorrow.

Kaleb shook his head. "No…no, darling, you are dwelling on the negatives. This is where acceptance was created, no matter how difficult or trying…about your father's death and your mother's true spirit. Do you feel it?" He paused as his hand touched the chilly metal wall and closed his eyes. "This is a place of rebirth." He smiled emphatically when he felt her well hidden sadness. "Refresh my memory…do you recollect when I asked you to take out all of your emotion on me in a duel and you were so afraid of losing control: of hurting me?"

Letting out a small chuckle that seemed impossible at the time, the woman was once again reminded of how easily he could brighten her mood when all she wanted to do was cry. "Mm, I remember…how chivalrous of you."

He chuckled himself. "Well, I do have my moments every once in a while."

The smile she had was beginning to overshadow the departing gloom in her eyes. "You were so conceited about the fact that I couldn't hurt you, so smug-but, I proved you wrong. We fought and I kicked your butt, but still…we became better friends that day." The last part of her words came out in such a rush that she couldn't stop herself; not wanting to think about her immediate rejection of him when he needed her, of what he had offered her and how she had turned him away.

"If memory serves, I _let_ you win that fight; it wouldn't have really made you feel better if you lost, now would it? Besides, when you thought that you had knocked me out with your Force powers, you looked like you were going to start bawling your pretty little eyes out."

Indignant feelings had suddenly surged into her system as thoughts of what she really had wanted to talk to him about gradually faded away. "That…is true." She confirmed in an uptight tone, sounding like the princess she was nicknamed after. "If you had died or had become physically disabled in some way, the fate of the galaxy and our mission would have been in peril."

"Ah, you know it was more than that." He raised that haughty eyebrow, the memories coming back eagerly. "You dug me, even back then, and were scared of pushing me too far. It would have been _too_ funny," He chuckled, "if the _mighty_ jedi who was supposed to save the galaxy was the one who jeopardized her mission in the first place."

"Whatever, Kaleb." Bastila replied while rolling her eyes, not amused in the least from his comment as she folded her arms across her chest; unknowingly accenting the area for him. "You _could_ have been hurt, but you were just playing around in the sand like some immature child."

"_Come on_, don't be like that…" He trailed, that charming smirk still directed towards her. "I'm a big boy now. And by the way, you had just as much fun as me out there…especially when _you _childishly kicked _me_ in the groin."

"And you deserved it too." She threw back: glaring at him as she realized that he had once again manipulated the conversation in his favor.

Bastila exhaled as she closed her eyes. _This wasn't supposed to be what they were talking about, but how to get back on track…Ah. _

"I am glad, at least, that no permanent damage was done." She commented while slipping her arms out of their crossed lock and reclining them against her stomach. "I would hate to have to go to some outside source if I wanted to have kids." The woman teased, knowing that this would get him to change the subject.

Kaleb scoffed. "I'm sure that you would go back to the jedi than settle for any others-you'd be too good for all of them." His arms bent and he flexed them impressively, "Either way, you're mine. There's no way that I would give you up without a war breaking out."

"Oh?" Bastila questioned openly, "You sound so sure of yourself…it's so cute." She taunted as her eyes unconsciously took in every ripple of his muscles, each one giving her a pleasurable stirring. "Maybe you're right…perhaps I would go back to the Jedi and I know that it's true about you not giving me up with a fight, but why…or better yet, Kaleb…how is it that you can fight better than men and women alike who have made the study of the lightsaber lifelong?"

This single question and its answer could lead down a perilous road, but she knew if she could say it to him, he would slowly be brought around to the truth…and she could be there for him when it hit-no matter how hard that may be.

Kaleb licked his dry lips in lax thought. "It's simple: I have such a treasure to fight for. I don't really care about how I got all this power or even where it came from…" His eyebrows creased as he gave her a determined stare. "As long as I can use all of it to protect you-keep you away from any harm no matter what the risk-I'm satisfied. To need to know more would be avaricious when I already have everything I could ever want and further."

"_Love_…" She called out, feeling the overflowing emotion of the same word from the man. _He really doesn't care about his past, the certainty of it, the reality that it was ripped away from him; that I ripped it away from him. _

Uncontrollable waves of sadness engulfed the woman as her heart raged and roared over her past actions.

"What if…" Bastila sniffed, "um…what if there was another reason? What if…this reason had to do with your past?" She asked carefully, willing the tears to stay put as she couldn't say the obvious out loud: she was too much of a coward, but would make him see the truth this way-she had to.

Kaleb's emotions once again clouded his judgment as he came closer to her, despite her orders to back away, but restrained the urge to hold her lovingly.

_Why is she so sad again…unless…**this talk**. _He thought bitterly as his hands balled into fists. _This thing, whatever it is, that's making her so grief-stricken. I'll stop it, dammit, she won't cry again._

"Don't you understand, Bas? What do I care about the past?" The man smiled as he brought his hand to her face, but still honored her wishes as he made no contact with her skin. "When the future is all the more promising…when _now _is when I have you with me?"

Dry sobs rocked her body, not at his proximity, the electric tingle of his skin almost on her, not even the love and warmth that was exuding from this man her heart demanded she take, but at the innocence in his eyes. Clouded to the truths that laid before him, at the injustice done to a man whose very aura was absolute and total power.

Her eyes couldn't bear the strain as a tear escaped its grasps, her lip quivering. "That's just it." She replied, voice trembling. "Don't you see?" Bastila had to look into those golden orbs of his that held the legitimacy of his past and his legacy. "Who is "me"? Who are you truly?"

Kaleb dared to move even closer when he saw her tear, as close as he possibly could be without touching her. "I'm the man who loves-who needs you so bad that every insignificant second without you is a moment I don't wish to live in." He drank in those intoxicating bluish-grey eyes. "The man who had no bona fide purpose in life, no real reason to keep on living, until he met a woman who gave him a goal that he plans to keep with all of his strength. Don't _you_ see, Bas? Any time when I'm not near you like this is merely waiting, a strenuous game of anticipation until our bodies touch again. Those are the only moments were I can truly know that I'm alive-when the dullness of time spent with any other is suddenly cast away and brightened by your awaited return."

Joy spread through her system, those words spoken with the utmost adoration and care for her, spread waves of elation throughout her veins. The woman didn't know what to say any longer, but her body begged for him, ached for his touches.

_One more time. _She promised herself. _One more time I will feel his love for me-his touch on my skin, his breath on my body. _Sniffling, Bastila looked up to see the love in his eyes. _One last time, I will have someone to call my own and then I will tell him. _Her mind began to judge and hate her for her selfish actions following the constant beatings of her heart in favor of them. _I will give him the greatest pleasure I can, and then I will tell him the truth. That his whole life is a lie, that I am a lie. One last time, and then my soul will be torn asunder and lost forever._

Her decision was absolute as she rose on her toes and began the final act of her heart.

The man had sensed her acceptance, her compassion, her longing: and it was connected all the more when she kissed him; not quite meeting his lips head on, but touching the corner of his mouth, eventually descending as she sucked and nipped at his neck. Kaleb grunted as he felt a particularly pressurized bite that he was sure would leave a discolored mark for all to see. His own eyes flashed dangerously as he swore that he would pay her back for this.

The man's mouth plunged to her neck, but went up instead of down as he gently nibbled on her ear; her moan expected as she instinctively rolled her head to one side. Kaleb took advantage of this newly exposed skin and bit her back: gentle enough to not injure, but hard enough to leave evidence; the similar bruise painfully noticeable against her milky skin.

"You think that you can have me just any old time you want, Bas?" He teased with a widening grin. "_I'm_ in control here."

Pools of heat raced down her body and crashed into the V between her legs. Those simple words drove her far beyond madness, pleasure, and even pain as she felt his damp tongue gently smoothing the area where he marked her, claiming her primitively, basely, but it being all the more satisfying.

"Whatever you say-_I'm yours_."

Kaleb was almost surprised from how submissive she was being as he placed his hands behind her thighs and raised them until they rested on her butt, all the time, squeezing, rubbing, and feeling the muscle underneath. Bastila gradually moved her lips away from his neck; pleased with the dark bruise she had branded him with as she worked her way up his jaw line, then his ear as she collided with a wall that he had backed her into.

"This time..." Bastila told him before moaning in his ear, as she enjoyed the simple pleasures of their bodies touching once again; that breathtaking glow that he made her feel by just being near. _It's already been far too long. _"We're going to work on your wants and needs."

He groaned while slim fingers glided over the bare skin of his neck again; the sensation of it unbelievable from the contrast of her touching him through fabric. Together they slid down the metallic wall, little by little as he kissed her passionately, nipping at her bottom lip every once and a while as they both slumped to the floor; going into another unyielding embrace. Kaleb felt as if he was going to burn alive now that she was finally so close to him after such an unbearable wait, breasts pressed firmly against his chest.

_Hmm…_

This new position that they were in was gratifying to her, but she wanted more than just nibbling on his ear as she thrust her hips to his, causing him to give way to the floor with her on top of him.

It was almost painful as his already hardened member became even stiffer from these exciting, aggressive actions as it threatened to break free of his pants and have her right now, but his eyebrows furrowed, with a chuckle accompanying it, as he didn't like this dominance she was assuming over him.

Kaleb roughly rolled the two of them over, so that he took her previous position. "My wants and needs will surely be sated, dear, _but_…" He started a deliberate moving pattern, creating unbearable friction between them as he grinded against her; mimicking what he wished to do, but with their clothes on. "_I'm _going to be the one who brings you to new heights of pleasure you could only dream of. _I love you too much to give you anything less_." He whispered softly into her ear as his hands went under her body to caress her supple bottom once again, pulling her up against him so he could rub his erection against her even more.

"_Oh Kaleb_…" Bastila moaned into the air as the resistance against the two of their bodies lit her own flame as she fiddled with his chest, digging into the firm muscle under his beater.

Rising up, the woman brought her face high enough to steal a kiss from his lips, but quickly retreated when she felt his tongue leave the confines of his own mouth and try to rush into hers. While Kaleb lowered his own head down to recapture his prize, she tugged on the straps of his white beater, so that he lost his balance, and lifted her feet against his chest to propel his body off hers and parallel to her head; the man grunting as he hit the hard metal flooring once again.

"_Awww…_poor Kaleb is back on the bottom." Bastila cooed at the dazed man as she threw his discarded article of clothing to the side.

Repositioning herself back on him, she lowered her face down until she was inches away from his lips: her hair a silky curtain against his face. "I should make sure that nothing was damaged below." She brought her hand underneath her frame to undo the button of his pants while she gently chewed on his lower lip to occupy his already foggy mind.

_Dammit_… He thought. _There's no way that I could reassume control if she gets my pants down. _

Kaleb willed his body to fight against her seductions as he wrapped a strong arm around her waist and freed his other one from her body to push him off the ground. The man grinned as he heard the woman yelp from being so suddenly rushed into the air and then effortlessly draped over his shoulder.

"That was a naughty thing you did there, Bas." His husky voice said to her amused, rumbling deep in his throat as he started walking. "Flipping me over and then trying to strip me when I thought it was clear that I was in control." He smirked as he swiftly plopped her down on her feet and pushed her to a wall, the woman groaning softly as she hit it. "And if you can't be a good girl and just enjoy the ride, I'm gonna have to force you." Bastila's bluish-grey orbs narrowed from rebellion, but her body wouldn't follow suit as she couldn't move and heard Kaleb chuckle superiorly. "And by _force_ you, I meant with _the_ Force. Your punishment…" He walked over to her with a cocky strut, coming close just enough to make her squirm with delight, "is something that you made me endure earlier. You can look all you want, but no touching." His ran his own hand down his defined abdomen to emphasis his meaning. "_But_ maybe, if you tell me how much you want this, what was it you said? Oh yeah-_hard, aching body of mine_…I'll let you do a little something, something."

The woman was trapped between a frigid, metallic wall and the hot, glistening area of his now bare, well-defined chest. Lava itself floated through her veins as Kaleb put his hands to better use by rubbing their weather-worn surface against the softness of her skin, the finery of her attire. His figure itself was already a powerful aphrodisiac as she could feel her head spinning and her connection with reality slowly fading away.

Bastila fought against her lover-wanting, desiring, and needing to retain the upper hand over him, so that she could show him just how much she loved him one last time. Kaleb's heart pounded madly against his chest-seeing Bastila glued to that wall, completely helpless as she couldn't budge, but overwhelming lust clouding those baffled eyes that tried to plead for him to stop this and yearned for him to continue, drove him to lunacy. He dove in for a fast kiss, but broke it and bit down on his lower lip, the small pain helping to keep him with the ability to manage his actions, but her beauty…

She was absolutely entrancing, even from the small strips of sickly light that illuminated her features. Striking, brown locks wild: untamed as they caressed her face and neck so, that he was jealous of their advances; air exiting heavily from slightly swollen lips as her chest lifted up and down from pride and emotion waging war on one another.

At his thoughts, she managed to capture his lips with an ardent passion, as soon as he was in reach and not at full attention; the burning sweet lips of her lover pushing against her own as his concentration wavered slightly from the act-sensations sweeter then anything the man had ever felt before enhanced all of his senses; every part of him longing to taste such flawlessness again and again. Bastila smiled into the kiss when she felt his barriers crumble and Force pushed him back almost a full foot away from her as she looked upon his frame. Unimaginable depths of power resided in those eyes of his that were locked on hers as his body heaved up and down from the remembrance of her skin. The woman knew that she was in a world of trouble now, but her pride boasted that she'd be damned if she lose her good judgment to him.

Kaleb had lost his focus when she kissed him, but it was no big matter-he hoped that she would have escaped his weak vice anyway.

The agony that came from the fact that he would not just pounce on her after she Force pushed him further away, drove him crazy, but he dug his nails into his palms to grasp some degree of self-discipline. If he had her now, like his body screamed from every pore he possessed, it would be because of her influence and not his will. No, when he decided to have his way with her, she would come willingly; pleading for him to devour and give wanted release.

The man suddenly zoomed towards his victim with so much speed and agility, that Bastila was taken aback when her body had been pinned against the wall once again. Kaleb didn't waste time as he kissed her urgently, tongue dancing wildly in her mouth, before she could speak and deprived hands clasped around her thighs as he slid her up the wall and lifted her to mid stomach: her legs instinctively wrapping around his hips. He bore gleaming, white teeth into a feral smile as he bit at her collar; ripping off the fold that hid strings his hands ruthlessly tore at to force down her outfit.

Bastila could barely think as her clothes easily tumbled down her skin and halted at her abdomen to expose full breasts held back by a simple bra and a creamy, slender stomach. Already thankful that her brown undergarments protected her modesty, part of her wondered if he could control himself further if they were to join her descended clothes. Her hand fingered through his dirty blond hair, darker tones of brown meshing with lighter highlights flawlessly, and she absently noticed how soft and feathery it was, now that it had grown considerably over their mission-reaching to the nape of his neck; an upward tug came to the corner of her mouth as her actions messed up his usually kept up style. He felt what she was doing, but it didn't distract him a bit as he continued to flicker his tongue over her freshly exposed stomach, sending wave after wave of pleasure up her spine as it playfully dipped into her belly button.

The woman knew that she couldn't pull off the same trick twice as her mind was already losing its focus. Everything about her screamed and gnawed at her core, heated her body, and made her wet with desire. And the light veil of sweat that draped his form; accenting all of his already extraordinary features by making his skin glisten, was not only gained from what he was doing now, but his previous actions as well.

_Wait…just what was he doing before she had come here? _

"Love," She called out in a delayed manner from his actions, but clearly hoping to gain his attention as he lifted his head up. "Just what were you doing before I came here?" She questioned, secretly trying to obtain a reprieve so she could recapture her bearings.

_Questions now?_ Kaleb thought, slightly irritated,_ Hm…poor Bas must need a second to recuperate-too bad I won't give it to her._

She was almost fully naked and he still had his pants on, something that his throbbing erection wasn't enjoying one bit. _Not quite yet-I'll meet your needs later, but…maybe a taste of what's to come?_

"My body had been overcome by so many emotions and memories that it started to perform a katra without knowing so." He answered, deciding to explain. "A dance so _raw_-" The man abruptly thrust his pelvis into hers and retreated just as quickly as he was rewarded with an acute, ragged exhalation from his act, "that I could not help, but follow it." He finished as if nothing had happened and grinned as he started to plant a trail of kisses in the destination of her chest. "My hands were the first to move…" Kaleb used his fingers to caress her breasts before his mouth even got there, slipping some of his digits underneath her bra to fondle hardened nipples, "but my legs, thighs, and hips soon followed." His hardness tingled as it made contact with her covered heat once again. "It was all so…_primal_."

_Damn him… _Bastila thought scornfully as his hips grinded against hers once again. _It hurt so good…_

Feeling his peaked erection was unavoidable as the memories of what it could do to her swam back, and sent even more surges of expectation and longing. Focus was all but a daze now as these new, sluggish, but powerful tremors wracked through her body and brought a glaze over her eyes. Almost collapsing against him, she sent her hand to rest on his abs for support as he finally began to feast on her breasts.

_No…not yet _She screamed internally as she felt the evidence of her heightened arousal drip down her inner thigh. _I won't be…done in so easily._

Sliding her fingers further down, the woman pressed her left hand against his blood-filled organ, grasping it tightly, while her right snaked its way into his pants; his own hands too busy with her breasts to stop her. As she reached to claim her prize, Kaleb automatically sucked in a labored breath as he released her nipple and she moved the defending fabric down his legs, seeking entrance for her other hand.

"Well…" Bastila trailed boldly, "I guess you must have learned these katras well, Kaleb, but you're still only a beginner." She coaxed his erect member out, her hands brushing across some stray hairs above what she now held as her property. "I'm just glad you didn't…_strain _anything."

She revealed a nervy smirk of her own as both of her hands suddenly clutched his tool firmly, her smoky-blue eyes filled with both love and lust. She was going to win this battle and he would just have to accept it one way or the other.

Kaleb groaned loudly as unbelievable amounts of bliss racked through him from her advances. She had grabbed his only weak spot and it was almost too much as these euphoric sensations rolled through him mercilessly, the tremors bulldozing through his body with their unearthly pleasures.

"_Ooohhh_…s-such a _bitchy_…m-move…" He stuttered weakly when he saw that satisfied smirk that donned her face.

The man almost staggered backwards as she gripped him even harder, his mind hazy from clouds of ecstasy taking over. _Come on!-gotta…gotta think…oh, **damn**, don't squeeze me like **that**…need to get…**Ahh**…need control. _

Kaleb gained temporary motion as he moved his mouth back to her chest, tongue stroking her nipple while earning a brief reprieve as she closed her eyelids. _This is it. _

He hooked the thumb of one of his hands on the sides of her panties and forced them down as his other hand's fingers roughly entered her soft folds; making her gasp sharply. They were at a stalemate for now, but this battle would be won. Whoever could make the other _scream_ in surrender would be the apparent victor.

"No, _you're _the beginner, Bas." He commented finally, a wicked gleam in his eyes. "Just…how long do you think it will take until my name echoes this room? _Taking all bets_."

She couldn't answer as tremendous pleasure rocked her core when he deliberately dove his fingers in deeper before she could reply. Never had Bastila encountered such want, such craving, such animalistic ferocity that she could do nothing, but let her mouth spill out her moans as her fingertips stroked his manhood. A second tremor of pleasure released itself from the epicenter of her womb and flooded Kaleb's fingers with her wetness.

"About…half a second after you, love." She stated in her last moment of clarity as she firmly gripped his long penis with one of her hands, the other wrapped around his waist to bring him closer.

The now moist tip of his hardened organ brushed against the hot skin of her stomach. This immense heat being combined would be his undoing, but she had to hold on a bit longer herself. The man had become even more vigorous as if in revenge for what she had done to him and Bastila bit her lip as the third, most pleasurable stirring yet, made her whole body shudder and shake like a lone leaf in a strong wind. She opened their bond to bring him closer to the edge-the woman could handle multiple orgasms: he couldn't.

"_Shit…_" Kaleb swore when he not only felt his ecstasy, but the one he was inflicting on her also. "_Bas_…you're trying to kill me."

His breathing patterns increased, groans becoming deep and guttural as she torturously rubbed his arousal against her amazingly soft skin; thumb brushing over the sensitive head of it lightly, but he managed to do the same to her as their bond was now opened fully-every tremendous sensation felt by their mate. Kaleb met her lips, tongue swimming in her mouth frantically as his fingers danced around that highly responsive nub of flesh and made her whimper loudly with the _agony_ of her stimulation.

He refused to give her time to enjoy each new sensation, piling pleasure after pleasure on her as he fingered her harder and moved back to her neck simultaneously-knowing that the combination would melt her into a puddle.

Kaleb went back to the spot where he previously bit her and licked it as a grin spread across his face. "Do enjoy yourself, babe."

He then bit her at her lower clavicle, the stimulating spot he discovered before, hard and unrelenting as he gave one final stab into her heat; feeling her inner walls clench desperately around his digits.

"_Kaleb…_" Bastila screamed breathlessly into the air as her own name resounded throughout the small room also; soft murmurs of his affection as she became rigid and arched against his body. "_Oh gods…_"

Sounds of passion echoed in her mind as her body obediently succumbed to waves of ecstasy, giving magnificent release which the woman clung to as they rose in her, higher and higher, of the total devotion and love that he filled her with. The woman's mind was far beyond any train of thought or reason as the intensity slowly died down from the best orgasm of her young life.

Satisfaction played across her face as blood returned to produce a flushed reaction, her mind gradually returning to reality to feel Kaleb lapping up the sweat produced by her smooth skin. Bastila's hand was hot and heavy as she realized that it still held his hardened penis and that is was not spent…at least, not physically. Surges of insecurity swept through her mind, but felt the man move the hand that wasn't still inside her, giving small tingles of delight, around hers.

His hand had guided her fingers to a small spot just below the base, it pulsing and throbbing throughout the entire period as his own fingers made sure that hers didn't move.

Finally regaining and composing himself to a presentable state, he positioned his body slightly off hers to gaze into her now focusing eyes. "_Mm-hmm_." He commented in a horribly smug tone.

Bastila could only watch as the same smirk he frequently wore appeared. "_You cheated…_" She summarized with bated breath.

"Hmm…"cheated" is such a harsh word, sweetheart. I like to think of it more as bended the results in my favor…but, enough of that." He leaned in and gave her a soft peck on the bridge of her nose before the arrogant smirk resurfaced. "How was it?"

"_Absolutely exquisite_…" The woman moaned softly as he gradually removed his fingers from her heat, "it's too bad you didn't join me." She rejoined, putting on a small frown.

"Just because there's no physical evidence doesn't mean that I didn't join you. Watching you reach that pinnacle of pleasure because of my doing, knowing that as long as you're content, no expense on my part is too lofty…" He trailed with a genuine smile filled with satisfaction, "and then hearing that exceptional language your body makes, the song of your moans as you leisurely float back into reality, brings me over the edge _every_ time."

"_Oh well_," Bastila breathed as she tried to catch her breath from the high she was only now recovering from, "it's really sad that you couldn't meet me up there, cause I know…" She rocked herself forward, pressing her perky nipples into his chest and tracing his ear with her warm tongue, "I could do a _much_ better job than you could do by yourself," The woman nibbled lightly on the lobe of his ear, hearing a deep moan that she felt rumble through his chest, "but since you're _so _good…"

She rubbed the pads of her fingers slowly against the man as she pushed him away lightly, unlocking her slim legs from his body while he fell back onto the floor; as Bastila laughed jovially from his rapt expression while she stood up and grabbed the bundled bunch at her thighs that was her clothes.

"_Ouch_…that one kinda stung, but-" Kaleb shrugged as he started to pull his own pants up, "You're right, I am good, and I did win our little battle, so it all kinds of balances things out in the end."

"Now, wait a minute." She stopped and faced him, a soft glare on her face. "Who said anything about you wining?"

He scoffed. "You mean before or after you yelled my name and had one of the best climaxes…well, you've only had three, but _that _definitely had to be number one from the way you sounded." He stretched his legs out as he pulled up his pants and buttoned them. "It's not your fault that every time we're alone together, you can't help taking my clothes off, but hey, just don't go _too_ far without me and I'm sure you'll be able to handle your smutty addiction."

"_Smutty addiction_"?" She rolled her eyes at his immoral comment. "Whose hands were all over _me_ in the first place, trying to get _me_ off?" She fired back, clearly satisfied with her logic.

Kaleb's smirk grew as only one thing in her comment processed in his mind. "_So_…I got you off, huh? Tell me more about that-anything specific, that I did, particularly stimulating?"

"Well…" Bastila trailed off as she fully stepped out of her clothes and began to walk back to him in an arousing manner, her naked hips swaying rhythmically as his vibrant honey eyes followed obediently. "You did this _really good_ _thing_ with your pinky finger…"

"Oh, yeah?" He responded absently as he couldn't look away from her hypnotic movements, his erection still strong. "And that whole biting thing we had going on there was pretty hot too…we're gonna have to explain these nasty marks though."

"Mmm-hmm…" The woman replied as she slowly slipped her middle finger into her mouth and made a show of sucking on it lightly, "_maybe_…or maybe we could do something else then worry about the others. I'm sure we've both had enough of their influence for one day. _We_ should focus on how to get more _comfortable_." She concluded as she stood less than a foot away from the man.

Kaleb's jaw dropped slightly as he watched her erogenous performance with deep interest, but his mind alerted him out of his growing stupor. _Snap out of it-that look she has is trouble: it's the same look you had before you…**Uh-oh**._

The man quickly scrambled to his feet as he started backing away from her. "Yeah, I'm pretty comfortable right now, so let's…uh, talk about that thing you wanted to tell me so badly before."

"Talk?" She asked quietly as she steadily pursued him, her hips keeping their provocative motion. "Why would we waste time on something as mundane as that when I'm _so_ _flagrantly_ addictedto what you can do to me and when I'll do _anything _to get it back?" Bastila's clear blue-grey eyes developed a fire that could tell even the dumbest speck of space dust that she would be getting what she wanted.

"That's good…you understand that you do indeed have a problem, Bas, and that's the first step to recovery-admittance." He told her with a weak smile as his pace increased a bit more. "But if I keep feeding the need, it's never gonna go away. This is for _your_ benefit, you know, and if I have to suffer, then I'll take that burden because…" He sniffed theatrically, eyes burdened with imaginary tears. "_I love you, Bas_."

"_Thank you, Kaleb_." She told him with contrived glee, "I should really _thank_ you properly, though." The woman told him as she finally got a hold on his pants with her pointer and middle fingers and tugged him towards her direction so he couldn't back up anymore; the two of them in the middle of the darkened room with only enough light to see his toned chest moving symmetrically with his breaths-Bastila knew that she was going to have fun as she slowly wet her lips with her tongue.

Kaleb wasn't going to let her get this close to his pants again; he had already learned that lesson, as he pulled his pants back in the opposite direction. "That's ok: there's no need to thank me like that. I don't want you to think that our relationship is only based on physical pleasures…it's so much more than that." His eyes darted around the shadowed room for his beater. "_So_…I'm just gonna find my clothes and, you know, we'll go on from there."

"_But, Kalebbb_…" Bastila whined like a spoiled child, "_We_ still have _things _to do; desires to satisfy. Besides, you owe me."

"_I_ owe _you_?" He questioned disbelievingly. "I don't get it. I make you laugh, definitely got you heated, and gave you the best orgasm you could ever have-what else do you want from me, woman? It's not always about you: I have needs too, dammit!"

"_Then let me fulfill those needs_." She whispered huskily as she once again entranced the man, her fingers starting to pull downward on the fabric.

Kaleb soon came back to his senses as he jerked away too fast; his feet tripping over each other as the two of them fell to the ground together with a thump.

"You know what, Bas? If I keep falling on the ground like this, I'm seriously gonna get brain damage…_freakin' knew you were abusive_…" He trailed as he rubbed the back of his sore head, soon noticing the awkward position they were in. "Um…whatcha you doing up there?"

"Nothing much, love…" Bastila trailed as her eyes caught her first real close-up at that covered masculine appendage which gave her so much pleasure, "Just wanting to play out some of the fantasies you have in that wonderful head of yours…" She replied as her eyes grew lustful, greedy.

"…Umm…Bas-are you hungry? I'm starving." He told her, quickly accessing more justifications to get out of whatever she was planning.

"Why Kaleb, how did you know…I'm _famished_." She eagerly replied as she brought her face closer to his body. "I wonder if you taste as good as you smell?"

The man absently lifted his arm and smelled himself. "Pew!" He exclaimed exaggeratingly, as he waved his hand in revulsion. "Man, I stink! I'll just save you the trouble by telling you that you don't want to taste me. I'm rank, rancid, disgusting even! Gosh, somebody check my expiration date, for the love!"

"Alright…I think I will." Bastila immediately agreed, sending a wave of relief through him, "But first I'll need to get those pants off you." She finished with that familiar smile on her lips as her finger laced themselves within the top of his garment.

"_Whoa_, wait!" Kaleb grabbed her entwined hand and chuckled nervously; it was like their roles were suddenly switched and he was looking at a female version of himself…no matter how stimulating the idea was. "That's definitely not where the date is!-You know, you're starting to peer pressure me here, Bas. "Oh, let me take your pants off, all the cool kids are doing it!"

"Well, I'm pretty certain you're not a kid." She responded as she tried to free her hand from his grasp and get back to her…objective. "At least you didn't feel that way against me…maybe I should _check_ and make sure…"

Kaleb couldn't help, but smirk a bit. "You don't have to check a thing. It wasn't so long that you should forget how…grown up I am down there."

"Well then, since we're both _adults_ here…you wouldn't mind me doing certain _things_ to you." She countered.

"Like…what kind of things?" He asked with a curious tinge, still playing hard to get, but inquisitiveness getting the best of him.

"Well…" The woman started, "there was this _one_ fantasy in your head that I found pretty interesting…more so because you had me in this position that I'm in now. I thought I would try it out…" She trailed off, knowing how hard it was to keep a blush from her face.

"_Hm_..." He sniggered, "You sound so sure of yourself," He mocked her from earlier, "It's so..._sexy_."

"Well, the Bastila in your vision was sure of herself," She explained, "and right now, I want to be her-that woman in your head that you loved." Bastila was sure to keep up the barriers on her end of the bond, not wanting him to know of what she still had to tell him- not wanting to ruin this.

Kaleb shook his head. "The girl in _my_ fantasies is the one I'm looking at now. I've never known you to be shy about anything-especially what's on your mind. It's a big turn-on-_you're_ a big turn-on."

"Then, let me do as you say." The woman shot back insistently, not knowing that she almost seemed as though she was begging. "Let me truly be the one who arouses you."

He looked at the bulge in his groin and then back at her. "Bas, you never have to ask me that-it's an automatic yes." He shook his head. "Remind me to get you some mirrors so you can see just how gorgeous you really are or...I could just tell you myself until I get around to it." The man's hand caressed her face; rubbing against nose, lips, cheeks. "You're so beautiful…" His hand paused at the side of her head, "that my whole body can't help, but shake and shiver from the soles of my feet to the hair on my head from the mere sight of you and when you look at me…" He removed his hand and placed it on his chest, "my heart just…stops, while my brain constantly questions how I was so lucky to find a woman like you."

Not trusting her voice, Bastila nodded in gratitude though both individuals had completely different reasons for their actions. Taking a quick, deep breath she un-buttoned his pants and slipped the garment down. She had never done this before and even with the image in his head guiding her, she was still a bit nervous. The woman hesitated briefly before she darted her tongue out and gave a small, but noticeable lick to his arousal.

"_Ahhh_…" He moaned from the contact of both wet and hot on him, the touch quick, but momentous in itself. The man couldn't stop the uncontrollable shivers that forced themselves through him. "_Damn_, _Bas_…"

"You're not quite there yet, sweetie, but soon." She said slowly, looking up to his face as her warm breath sheltered his manhood.

Taking another quick gulp of air, she covered the first few inches of him in her mouth and then closed it; her tongue exploring this newly found area, throat pulling at it as though it was sustenance. Hearing a deep groan, she unhurriedly pulled her mouth away, but failed to totally disengage from her new toy. Wrapping her tongue around its head, the woman licked the underside; thoroughly enjoying the small drop of pre-cum that she had forced up to the surface. As Kaleb's hand approached her, Bastila quickly let go of him; fearing that maybe she had done something wrong.

The hard pull that resulted from her speedily letting go of his dick made him writhe in pleasure, clutching at the metal floor and fingers scraping against his legs; the distraction of pain needed as his body couldn't handle so much gratification at once. These sharp, pleasing sensations would be the death of him if she continued.

"Bas, you…this is…_it's too much_."

"I know it isn't, sweetie." The woman boasted with fictitious confidence, still internally wondering if she did something incorrectly as the Bastila in his mind did this for several minutes and she was barely pass one, "Now that you've had your break and let me catch my breath, I think I'll thank you properly like I promised I would."

Bastila then lowered her head and nudged his quivering manhood with her nose before starting at the base of his erection and trailing an evident vein to the top where her tongue slipped into his split-his moans loud as she did so. There she managed to cover the majority of his bulbous head before once again engulfing him; doing a series of fast sucks and agonizing pulls until she was again at the top; preparing to start all over again.

Kaleb's own body betrayed him as it began to meet her pulls with his hips, the frantic thrusts a reflex he could no longer control. His body was taking over as her actions brought him way beyond any ecstasy boundary he had before; his mind nowhere to be found as a warm vibration, turned violent, encompassed his lower spine built in intensity and threatened to overpower every sense he had. He tried to fight her-it was far too much pleasure, too much satisfaction at a single time-by bucking his hips and gasping for her to stop, but she disregarded his pleas as her tongue gave him fiercer, angrier flicks around his manhood.

Both grunts and moans became necessary as the room dissolved away and it was only his penis, her mouth, and the great waves of pleasure that crashed through him. He unintentionally heard a cry echo the area and realized, with shock, that it had come from his own mouth.

Bastila could feel everything she did to him, his command over his personal will power beyond measure, but his control now way less than hers, something she would secretly take enjoyment in later. As for now, a dizzying anticipation filled her being as he was sheer moments away from exploding, but she wanted to stretch this out further. Kaleb had given her absolutely everything-had given up absolutely everything, and she…she would do whatever it took to make him content, right now in this beautiful moment that belonged to only them. Releasing his now glistening manhood, the woman could feel the waves of energy igniting from him, whether Force or sexual, she didn't know or care. Carefully slithering herself up his torso, she made sure never to lose contact with his pulsing organ. Her face was level with his and she waited until he would open those dazzling eyes to see the extreme love she reserved for _only_ him, and remember it far after this.

The pleasurable quakes inside him died down, but didn't diminish as the shaken man tried to get his breathing down to a normal pace. His erection was already at its peak when he felt his lover's naked body rub against his, but he needed extra as he opened his eyes to capture her face. A lovely smile greeted him in her eyes as well as it was on her lips, as if this was what she had been waiting for, and he could swear that the beats of his heart were audible as he was overwhelmed from how much love dwelled in those passionate smoky-blue orbs of hers.

"_Hey, Kaleb_." She purred to him sensually, mere centimeters away from his face. "I just want to say that…no matter what happens or what anyone may say against this…_I_." She neared; warm breath animating his awaiting lips, "_Love_." Her lips lightly brushed against his. "_You_."

He was confused, if not extremely elated, his heart filled with joy; there was no need to prove her love to him in such a fashion-he already knew that he was eternally hers. "Bas-"

The woman cemented her mouth with his before he could finish, lips pushing against him with so much need and dependency flowing out of her side of their bond that it was almost like she would die if they were separated from their intimate deed.


	14. Agony

Ok, this is weirdish, but on to the second part of the 13th chapter!

Another song for this one:

Never Keeping Secrets by Babyface (Oh yeah…this is definitely the song for Bas after the revelation thing goes down and she's giving her explanations. Unfortunately, a man made it so you're gonna have to switch some words around to make it girl version or just ignore it. Whatever works.)

**Again-gotta give the thanks to my beta-love ya!**

Aw, poopie, I'll just say that this is Chap.14

Loud, raging alarms abruptly resounded throughout the Ebon Hawk as red emergency lights flashed throughout the room; the ship unexpectedly jerking to a violent halt as Bastila and Kaleb careened towards a wall, but the man quickly used the Force to stop him and his lover from smacking straight into it.

"You're not hurt?" He immediately asked her when they quickly came to a halt and was relieved when he saw her shake her head. "What the hell just happened?"

"Those are…the ship's emergency alarms?" She asked confused as to what could have caused this. "The Ebon Hawk must be in some sort of danger for this to happen." She responded with an uncanny calmness, while her mind silently, but vehemently cursed this damnable interruption; vengeance ordaining her to kill whoever was responsible for its existence.

_Even the Force won't be able to save Canderous, if he was messing around with the ship's controls again._

Kaleb's eyes widened. "We're in danger?" The man lifted her up also as he stood. "This is serious-the sith haven't attacked us in space since we left from Dantooine, but they decide to do it now?" He groaned, "I've got a really bad feeling about this."

"I'm sure that it's just a few more of Malak's Sith bounty hunters." She reassured him with a relaxed hand on his chest. "You'll just have to man the turrets and eliminate them like before."

He shook his head. "I don't-" A sudden jerk rocked the ship as the two of them fell to the ground. "_Ugh_, this…can't be something as simple as some blasts from enemy ships. There's no way that they could rock us like this." Kaleb hastily rose again as he pulled his skintight boxers up and gathered his pants to place them back on. "Come on, Bas…" He trailed discontentedly as his erection was already dying down, "we've gotta hurry."

"…Right…" The woman agreed grudgingly and started to don her undergarments and clothing with her own concealed reluctance; swearing to herself that she would give him inconceivable pleasure and not being able to complete her task.

She also had the worst feeling that something horrible was going to happen soon, but she buried the matter as she hurried.

--------------------------------

"Carth, what the hell!" Kaleb exclaimed as he and Bastila breathed heavily from running all the way to the main hold; seeing everyone gathered with worried or angered expressions. "What's going on out there?"

Canderous quickly approached him, eyebrows burdened from frustration. "Kaleb-we've been looking for you everywhere on this ship! Where the hell were you?"

"That's not important." Bastila snapped from her still evident irritation, her tone clearly reflecting that even the Mandalorian would not cross her. "Carth, what has happened?"

"It's a Sith Interdictor ship." The pilot explained as the red glow of the ship's lights gave his already harried expression a darker look. "They must have known that our hyperspace route was headed to Korriban and severed us from our route." He sighed. "We've been caught in their tractor beam, so there's nothing that we can do."

"Do you know who we're up against?" Kaleb asked, already frustrated that there was no escape.

"Yeah…it the Leviathan; my old mentor, Saul's, ship." He answered with flagrant hatred towards the one he spoke of.

Kaleb groaned as he started to pace the cramped area, glancing at every crew member as he did so and seeing the dependence on his decision in their eyes. "We're going…to have to find a way to escape, but not exactly right now." He stopped pacing, as he let the plan simmer with his audience. "There's no way that all of us can stop them, so we have no choice but to let them capture us."

A predictable clamor of protest met his ears, but he raised a firm hand to silence them. "I know that it's not the best plan in the world, but it's the only choice that's available at the moment. Yell at me all you want, but you'll all be killed if you fight back and I would prefer to not let that happen."

Carth nodded. "He's right, everyone. It's futile to try and fight our way through this ship-it would be a massacre. If we escape at all, secrecy would be the best way to do it."

"Talk of an escape is a bit premature, don't you think?" Bastila reminded him, as she crossed her arms. "I have yet to hear of a way that we're actually going to get off of the Leviathan."

"That I can answer, but the arrangement itself isn't so simple." Kaleb told them as he leaned his back against a wall. "We need to figure out who has the most concrete chance of avoiding capture so that they can come and rescue all of us later. It's a long shot…but right now it's our only hope. It's also clear that the admiral will be watching Bastila, Carth, and I far too closely for us to do anything, so I guess…" He looked up at them, "That someone else is gonna have to be the hero."

"Well, if we're gonna pick someone to save our skins, we better do it quick." Carth warned. "In another minute or so, we're gonna have Sith troops marching up our loading ramps."

"So," Mission asked impatiently, already scared from the man's comment, but not willing to show it, "Who's gonna be the one who busts you guys out?"

Kaleb gauged the abilities of each one of his companions and rubbed his chin in thought. He already knew that Canderous had that bio implant that could heal him rapidly, Juhani stealth; Jolee would probably use Force manipulation after making them believe him some useless old jedi, Zalbaar…was a Wookie, and there wasn't a cell out there that could hold Mission, but…all of them were too much of a risk and he just couldn't stand the thought of sending anyone of them to their deaths.

_Unless…_ He thought, as another idea suddenly struck him.

The droids, specifically one droid, was fully capable for the job and had far more advanced abilities than most humans could ever dream of having.

"HK…" The man trailed with a tinge of uncertainty, but quickly masking it with grim resolve as he looked at the unit.

_Statement: I find this agreeable, Master. De-activate my main circuits and wipe my memory chip. The Sith will take me to the junk heap and I can come and rescue the rest of you after I reactivate._

Kaleb shook his head. "I don't know…the sith could also de-assemble you before your prototype kicks in."

_Answer: That is possible. My reserve power supply is a prototype yet to be tested. Yet, I can attempt the task, if you wish._

He knew that HK was his best possible choice to avoid any human casualties and that the worse could happen to him would be his deactivation, but the whole situation grated on his conscience. The droid was as close to him as any other on this ship.

"HK…I know that you can complete this task. You've never failed me before and I expect that this won't change now. Go to the cargo hold and commence you're deactivation."

The droid's eyes flashed brightly in acknowledgement of his Master's request as he headed towards the cargo hold and a thick silence followed his departing.

"Damn!" Carth exclaimed; breaking the silence, as the ship was being pulled in even faster. "They're dragging us into their docking bridge."

Kaleb inhaled deeply and exhaled calmly, but his heart jumped as the whole crew heard thunderous hammering on the entrance door to the vessel.

"By orders of the admiral Saul Karath, you will open the door to your ship or face you're already grievous crimes being added to!" A male's voice that sounded mechanized boomed to them from the outside.

"This is it." Kaleb replied to all of them as he neared the button that released the door. "Nobody try and fight back."

The young man pressed the button and revealed a small battalion of Sith officers; one walking towards him who was most likely the commanding officer of them all.

"We are only here for Bastila, Carth, and…" He stopped when he stared into Kaleb's narrowed golden eyes, but quickly smirked under his blackened visor. "Ah yes, you. This one has caused us quite a bit of trouble, huh boys?" The officer directed to the rest of his runts with a dark chuckle. "But then again, I've never known him not to be. Detain them all-the others can go to the regular holding areas: they are unimportant, but these three will be brought to the…special cells. Place suppression collars on the Jedi also until you've securely locked them up. Don't want any Force related mishaps, now do we?"

A subordinate with several pairs of plasma restraints walked over to the three and handcuffed them while the rest of the crew was pushed onward with rifles to their backs. Sadness almost overwhelmed Kaleb as he saw them walking in an opposite direction then the three of them were, knowing himself to be a failure as their captain, but he knew that this wouldn't be the last time he would see them-it just wouldn't.

Carth growled as he was the first one pushed out of the ship, him next, and then Bastila as they were led down some long access strip.

Despite the natural spite that was between all of them and the soldiers that led, Kaleb was actually allowed a moment of self-interested thought as they walked down the bland metallic corridors. And that one thought was centered on Bastila.

They're going to interrogate us-I know it. And from what I've heard from Carth, Saul isn't a person overflowing with mercy.

He took a quick glance at her while they turned a corner and saw that her face was dispassionate, a gift that she had picked up from the Jedi that showed no hints of emotion. The man knew that there was more than that, but his Force suppression collar didn't allow him to read her mind.

Kaleb internally swore to himself for letting Bastila fall into such a position when he had promised to protect her with his life and knew that these sith would try to take her from him. He knew that this was hypocritical, but he would fight everyone last one on this ship with his bare hands before they would do so.

The guard that was behind him suddenly shoved the man when he saw his restrained hands writhe threateningly from his thoughts.

"Hey you! Don't even think about getting any ideas, unless you want an accident before you even make it to your cell."

Kaleb's blood boiled from the grunt's comment as he halted and turned around with a malicious stare, wanting nothing more than to rip the man's vocal cords out and present them to him, but, out of the corner of his eye, he caught Bastila's face; expression still unreadable, but smoky-blue orbs mutely pleading to him that he wouldn't start anything that could get him killed.

The young man gritted his teeth as he forced something that resembled a smile. "Hadn't even crossed my mind."

"Hmph," The Sith said domineeringly, "that's what I thought. Keep it moving." He ordered the others as they resumed their little trek.

Kaleb said nothing more as he decided to observe this ship they were on, and, for some strange reason, knew that they were close to their holding cells. He was also barraged with strange episodes of déjà vu; as if he had walked these very hallways before, but rolled his eyes at the thought.

_You've seen one ship, you've seen them all._ He convinced himself as they finally entered a fairly large room that held three holding cells.

"You will remove all of your personal items, weapons-hidden or otherwise, and remove all your clothes in case one of you thinks you're crafty." The commanding soldier directed in Kaleb's direction.

The other man smirked, this time with no real effort. "Well, I am flattered that you want to see my body, officer, but you see, you're just not my type. Now, if you were a woman, and had a whip…"

The Sith walked up to him, blackened visor up in his face. "A smartass, huh? We'll see how funny you are when you've had electricity repeatedly run through your body. Maybe another cute remark like that will help you through the pain."

He shrugged as he began to undress like he ordered. "Only one way to find out, eh?"

As soon as the three of them were in only their underwear, the other two Sith confiscated all of their belongings and left the room as the lone officer roughly undid the Force suppression collars on Bastila and Kaleb and all of their other fetters; pushing them each into cells that activated as soon as they occupied them.

"Not that you have a choice against this anyway, but you will remain here until the Admiral comes for your interrogation." The Sith officer told all of them as he headed towards the door. "Unfortunately, I have to get back to my station and check out the rest of your little crewmates, but I'm sure that I'll hear stories of your torture session with Karath." He concluded with a malicious chuckle as the mechanical door slid to a close behind him.

Kaleb put a finger to the force field that held him captive, but quickly withdrew it as it shocked him. "Well, this is pleasant. I'll have to personally thank Saul for these spectacular waiting arrangements."

Carth scoffed, "Enjoy it while you can. As soon as the admiral arrives, he's going torture us like that one soldier said he would. Just his specialty-sick and twisted."

The younger man just sighed as he leaned against the metal back of the cell. "Wouldn't be the first time I've had to go through it."

Kaleb took a glance at Bastila and noticed, with slight surprise, that she had actually allowed a few traces of trepidation throughout their bond that he could now feel since his suppression collar was removed.

/There's no need for you to be scared./ He consoled in her mind as he lazily yawned and closed his eyelids.

/I am not afraid./ She answered back somberly. /I'm actually more concerned for the others than myself at the moment. They've done nothing to earn this fate./

/Don't worry; they'll be alright. I have a feeling that they're gonna be questioned too and besides, HK is gonna rescue them./

/You know that I dislike that droid, so I have a hard time believing that he will save any of us./

She sighed and it echoed in his head, as he could feel a tinge of apprehension from her.

/What?/ Kaleb asked concerned.

/…Do you think that we'll…?/ Bastila hesitated once again and decided against asking him this. /I'm sorry-forget I ever said something: it's childish. Foolishness getting the best of me because of our situation./

/I won't let them hurt you./ He responded firmly/I already couldn't stop this from happening, but…_I won't let them hurt you_./ The man repeated with as much, if not more, resolution as before.

/I know you won't, but, Kaleb…I need you to protect yourself. They won't kill me because of my Battle Meditation, but you…/ Bastila trailed with a heavy heart. /Just _please_, swear to me you won't-/

The woman was cut off as the door to the area suddenly opened with a whoosh and a clean cut hat wearing man wearing a grayish-blue Sith admiral's uniform ambled in unceremoniously, accompanied by two other soldiers.

A small smile spread on his face as his dull grey eyes scanned his captives, but stopped on one particular man.

"Carth, it's been absolutely ages." He opened as if the pilot and he were long lost friends. "I see that the years have not been as merciful to you as they have me though. A shame really."

"Maybe it's because your face haunts my every dream, Saul." He snarled with pure abhorrence towards the man in front of him. "That attack you ordered on my home planet killed my wife, and for that, I swear I'll kill you."

The admiral scoffed, "You used to be a man of action, Carth-not a pathetic weakling making threats that they cannot carry through." Saul continued to walk towards them casually, gloved hands clasped behind his back. "Perhaps that is why we Sith are the ones who are winning. We know what we want and we simply take it. I had to destroy that useless planet of yours to cement my loyalty to the Sith and I did so gladly. To tell you the truth, I cannot understand why you are taking such offense; you know war and that people who are not strong will die."

"My wife and son were stronger than you can ever fathom of becoming, you coward." Carth spat back.

"Hm, clearly not, but under any circumstances all of that is in the past, and I've always been one who liked to look to the future." The man stopped and redirected his gaze to Bastila. "It is nothing short of amazing that we were able to capture you after the great chase you gave us."

"You may have captured us and earned this paucity of a victory, but that is all you will achieve." She told him unflinchingly, "I will never aid you in destroying the Republic or the Jedi, no matter what base things you may do."

"Your words are brave Bastila, but the lure of the dark side is hard to resist-or so I am told. Either way, I'm sure that Malak will be very pleased that he has finally acquired the last piece to his ingenious puzzle after such a long wait."

"Hey, asshole." Kaleb remarked towards the admiral fearlessly as he finally opened his eyes to look at him. "Bastila's not just some thing at your disposal, so stop treating her like she's a tool. Besides, there's no way that I would let her fall into your grubby little hands-we just wanted to make a quick pit stop to see how many more of you I had to stomp down."

One soldier behind the admiral started to raise his rifle, but Karath raised a hand to stop him as he smiled again and side-stepped to the impudent man. "That's quite a mouth you got on you. I wonder if it can be put to some practical use during your interrogation." Saul absently rubbed some white hairs on his chin. "I wonder…are you as devoted to the light like your Jedi friend is?"

The younger man scoffed. "Don't force your boundaries on me-I'm not as simple minded as you are to summarize it so easily. I choose to follow neither light nor dark because none have shone themselves worthy to be learned by me."

"Ah, a rebel, are you?" He chuckled a bit, "Yes, you always were one to be the radical revolutionary, but even so, you must see the futility of your situation?"

"Well…" He glanced around his surroundings vaguely, "it is a bit chilly in here with only my underwear on, but the heat radiating from this force field is heating me up pretty nicely." Kaleb grinned with narrowed eyes. "Thanks for the concern though, Admiral. Who knew that you cared?"

Saul laughed. "You are defiant. Hmm…I'm sure the Dark Lord would reward me if I just killed you once and for all, but he may want to question you given all of the trouble you've caused him…and the history between the two of you."

Kaleb's brow furrowed. "History between me and that junkhead?" He asked bemused, "Who told you that piece of crap?"

The admiral tried to restrain a chuckle. "You mean…" Karath glanced at an uneasy Bastila whose eyes refused to meet his, "Oh, this can't be true, can it? He really has no idea of what's going on here?" He shook his head and looked back at Kaleb. "Ah well, I won't deprive Malak of the chance to reveal the truth to you himself." Saul saw that the young man was about to speak, but had no patience for it as he had already dallied long enough. "Activate the torture chambers." He ordered callously to the soldier on his left side.

The Sith nodded as he walked over to a control panel and pressed a single button. Pulses of electricity surged through all of the cells as screams rang throughout the room. Kaleb clenched his stomach tightly and bended over as he couldn't even yell from the pain that wracked through him; every nerve in his body an inferno and it feeling as if his skin was slowly being ripped off piece by piece.

"Enough." Admiral Karath snapped. "I don't want them to pass out before I even get the chance to question them."

The soldier nodded again as he pressed another button to stop the electricity, as the three captives were gasping heavily.

"I am sorry to have done that without warning, but I do need all of you to know that this is a very serious matter." Saul remarked composedly, unperturbed by their laborious gasps. "Since it is obvious that you will not answer my questions, Bastila, I will look to your ally since his loyalties have been quite…flexible in the past."

"I'm sick of you saying things like you know anything about me." Kaleb snapped angrily, despite his stinging frame. "What the hell do you know about my past?"

The Admiral suddenly glared at him, grey eyes cold. "I am interrogating you, not the other way around. You answer my questions, not ask them."

"I'm not answering a damn thing, Saul." Kaleb shot back just as aloof as the other man was. "Actually, I take that back. If the question is "Are you the ugliest bastard I've ever seen in my life?" then that's a clear and resounding yes."

"Hmph…channel all of the electricity's power to our rebel's chamber." Saul demanded to the Sith. "Keep it at a moderate level-don't want the fun to end too quickly now." The older man smiled as he once again approached his cell. "It is time to put whatever loyalties you may have to the test and I have a feeling that your will can be broken if you feel enough pain."

"A cute theory, but it won't work." The young man told him insolently, "I'm no stranger to pain."

"Is that so? Well, the two of you will be reacquainted soon if you do not answer my questions. This interrogation will begin now. Each time that you refuse to answer, you will suffer." He concluded simply.

Kaleb smirked as he locked eyes with the Admiral. "Give it your best shot."

The other man's eyes narrowed. "I tire of your games-answers are all I need from you now. On which planet is the Jedi Academy located?"

"Oh, that's easy." He answered nonchalantly. "It's that little planet called "Fuck-off". You know, it's located up your ass and around the corner." He smirked widely, "Yep, found that one out in Malak's diary."

"Amusing." Admiral Karath responded with a small nod as he waved a hand toward the Sith at the panel's direction.

Another surge of electricity burst through her lover's cell and ignited all of his nerve endings with an unrelenting agony; the man grinding his teeth in an effort to not cry out as his vision blurred and a clawed hand scraped against the yellow force field that contained him: the shocks that came from it nowhere near what was tearing through him now.

_Kaleb, no…_

Bastila knew that she couldn't show any weakness to the Admiral or he would exploit it, but seeing Kaleb in so much anguish was a torture in itself. He was protecting her even now-taking all of the pain so that she wouldn't have to suffer anymore because of the oath he made to her, while this situation was her fault in the first place.

"Stop." Saul barked again, cutting through the women's thoughts, and the surge desisted as Kaleb's legs buckled and he fell to his knees gasping. "My, my; you don't look as sure of yourself as you did before. I suggest that you answer my questions before you pass out."

"Why…would I…do that?" He questioned, as he took painstaking inhalations from the unmerciful throbbing of every cell he possessed. "It's just…getting good."

Karath chuckled. "You're a stubborn thing, aren't you? That's alright, it's certainly more interesting that way, but…just what are you trying to protect?" The man asked him with genuine curiosity as he rubbed his chin once again. "You've already told me that you hold no allegiances to the light or dark sides and you've always been an extremely logical person…so then why are you so horribly against answering such simple queries?"

"Maybe I just…don't like you." He commented back snidely, "You ever…think of…that?"

"Hmm…that was to be expected. Moreover, that was a question that you did not answer." He turned to the soldier. "Once more and…add a bit more juice to it this time."

A muffled snigger resounded from the man's darkened visor as he obliged willingly; finger hovering over the button.

"No!" Bastila shouted abruptly before the Sith could finish the action, not being able to bear seeing Kaleb go through such torments again. "That…that wasn't even a question that had to do with this interrogation and he answered truthfully, whether you liked it or not. There's no reason why he should be punished for that."

The Admiral was taken aback as a grin crept on his lips when he stared at the Jedi. "I'm truly shocked. I expected such things from this one here, but such distress from a member of the Order?" He chuckled to himself as he shook his head. "They always were stories that you were a feisty one. I was trying to keep you in prime condition for the Dark Lord, but I can't stand such effrontery to my way of doing things-switch the flow to the last cell, but bring it back down: I don't want her too hurt now."

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Kaleb growled as he slowly lifted himself back to his feet. "I'm the one you're questioning here-not her-so shut the fuck up and get back to it."

Saul eyed both the young man and woman curiously before his grin upgraded to a smirk. "I doubt torturing you any longer will gain me your true cooperation," He directed towards Kaleb, "however, even the mightiest heroes have trouble watching people who they care about suffer. We will begin a new game: each time you answer falsely, Bastila will be electrocuted."

Kaleb attempted to keep his strong disposition, but the Admiral caught the slight waver in his eye's determination as they would not meet the other man's stare.

"Yes…I thought as much. I have finally found the hero's weakness-you have fallen for her, boy?"

The captive lowered his head and closed his eyelids to cover the conflicted emotions that his eyes would display. "Ask the damn questions, just…don't hurt her."

/Kaleb, don't!/ Bastila exclaimed in his mind. /I don't matter: my pain is meaningless, but you have already suffered enough./

His eyes opened as they briefly met hers. /I'm…I'm sorry; Bas-I can't do it. I know that you can take the pain, but…I can't: the galaxy be damned./ He glanced back at Saul before closing his side of their bond from any more opposition. "The academy is on Dantooine, but something tells me you already knew that."

Karath smiled approvingly. "An excellent beginning. I am glad to see that you are being reasonable. You are right though, that first question was a test. Obviously, Malak knew the Academy was on Dantooine and it has since been destroyed by our fleet. The planet is an empty graveyard now: nothing remains of your former Masters!"

"Spoken like a true Sith." Kaleb responded darkly, "Destroying needlessly just to feel better about yourselves. All of you will forever be fools."

"More meaningless insults. Call us whatever you wish, but it will not change the fact that we are destroying your useless Republic; doing for the greater good what weak minds cannot yet comprehend." Saul raised an inquisitive eyebrow. "Now…tell me about your mission. How were the Jedi planning on using you to stop Lord Malak and our Sith armada?"

"Kaleb, you're not gonna give him an answer to that, right?" Carth asked the man challengingly. "I know that you're trying to protect her, but this is information that could destroy the Republic!"

"We were searching for the Star Forge." The young man said plainly, ignoring the pilot's remarks as he kept his stare on the admiral.

"Kaleb, you must stop this!" Bastila called out to him desperately, the harsh words exiting her moth without proper thought. "I know that you wish to save me from harm, but…our mission is too important, please, I…" The young man faced the woman with an almost overwhelming amount of regret echoing in his eyes, but said nothing. "_I_…" She trailed off again, no longer knowing what to say; perceiving her situation a truly lose/lose one. Either her lover, whom she cherished above all others, would be hurt or the galaxy, her mission that she had swore to carry out.

"How could you answer him so simply when there are billions of lives hanging in the balance?!" Carth questioned irately, angered by the fact that he was so indifferent to the state of the galaxy and that Bastila wasn't helping.

"I would be grateful, Carth." Karath answered calmly, "He is also sparing you from agony beyond your comprehension."

"All of this is short term; I would gladly take a pain that will fade away then one that could plague the Republic for generations!" He exclaimed back to the admiral.

"Hm…next question," Saul continued, "tell me how you found out about the Star Forge?"

"I saw Revan and Malak searching for it in my dreams."

His pilot companion glared at him. "How could you betray your Jedi Order so effortlessly?" He looked up at the female Jedi. "You too, Bastila-how could you just let him do this?"

The woman didn't so much as glance at the man as she kept her line of sight on Kaleb, who returned his glare with so much coldness in his golden eyes, that even Carth was stunned.

"The jedi have never been _my order_, so _I_ betray _no one_."

The Admiral laughed at the display. "I find your willingness to cooperate pleasing, though it seems that your answers are quite upsetting to Carth. No matter-he always was one to flinch away from opportunity and we are almost finished here." He smiled as he checked the time, "The info you have given me has been very useful, but I fear our session is over. Lord Malak will want to continue with this line of questioning himself; I will leave you in these cells with a small taste of the horrors you will suffer when Lord Malak arrives." The man turned around and headed for the door, but stopped as he looked to the Sith at the control panel. "Electrocute them all except Bastila; Malak will want to deal with her himself. Actually," He stopped in his tracks once more, "I have an even better plan." He glanced at the other soldier in the room. "I do have a bit of time to spend with an old acquaintance. Apprehend Carth and bring him along with us-we have much so very much catch up on."

The soldier nodded as the other Sith disengaged the force field on the battered pilot's cell and gripped him roughly. "Come on, Republic, you're coming with us."

Carth was silent as the man pushed him towards the door and left with the Admiral, but Saul's other minion smiled as the door closed once again and he turned the dial to full power on Kaleb's chamber.

"You there. With the smart mouth." He directed to the young man. "You had a lot to say against us Sith, right? Called us fools if I remember correctly." He scowled, as Kaleb didn't even spare a glance in his direction.

"_Captive_! Look at me when I'm speaking to you!"

"I don't answer to grunts." He told him impassively as he scratched the side of his head, still not looking at the Sith. "Torture me if you will, but keep your mouth shut while you do it."

The angered soldier pushed the button down hard to activate the sequence as the electricity rushed through Kaleb's chamber once again.

His already diluted body, weakened from the previous shocks, almost collapsed as placed all of his body weight to one bended knee from the most horrible electric attack yet. He again refused to let out any sounds that showed the pain that was ravaging through his system, but couldn't stop the intense tightness and throbbing in his head as his vision once again became very blurry. Besides a horrible ringing in his ears, the last thing Kaleb heard was pleading from Bastila to desist before his eyes rolled to the top of his head and beautiful darkness welcomed him as he felt his calves buckle beneath him.

--------------------- (Some hours later) -----------------

_**You have managed to openly detect me once again.**_ A man's cool, composed voice rung throughout Kaleb's aching head; so proverbial… **_I am not surprised. My abilities have always seemingly been unmatched, so it is natural that the same goes for you._**

Pulses of pain ran through ever nerve ending as the young man couldn't even move; seeing only darkness surrounding him. _Who are you?_

**_It has not been so long, has it? I have always been inside of you, hidden by ancient techniques and antiquated customs, but even those could not fully embrace me and because of this, you have felt my presence while you were not as…alert; most memories that we've had. _**It answered, so inherently villainous in its tone, but not quite evil. **_I am and have been called many things, but I would be most recognizable simply as you._**

_Me?_ Kaleb questioned back lamely, far too tired to give way to confusion; he would absorb information at the moment, not relay it. _What are you, some hidden conscience?_

**_A reasonable conclusion to come by, but no, that's more your role; as I said before-I am you, or more accurately, you are me-a vital piece to a most convoluted puzzle. You are now able to dialogue with me because you were at the verge of dying and your own mind has been temporarily weakened because of it. When one is at the brink of such debacle, the body can produce wondrous effects that normally would be thought impossible: such as the healing that it is giving you now._**

_Damn, that bastard got me so bad that my body has to heal itself?_

**_Yes, an instinct that I had self-taught it, but even now you are receiving help with the task. Overwhelming compassion, adoration, devotion, guilt, sorrow, regret, and internal pain all fuel these well minded intentions._**

Kaleb was puzzled as to what reason the last emotions were added, but had better questions since he didn't particularly want to share his love with this unknown entity. _I don't quite understand. You say that you're me and I'm part of you, but then what exactly does that make both of us?_

**_You, a fractured half, to my once whole one. A single peeling off of my many layers-the obvious question that leads to an enigma, but in due time, you will find that even you will fade away._**

_Fade away?_

**_This is not real-you are not genuine and are lacking. She has tried to warn you of this: of me, but you refused to listen. The truth will find you either way, it will not be denied any longer; however, it will not be a delicate discovery. There can be no escape-a former novice comes and he will make her suffer from forcing such unnatural recognition upon you, and in her suffering, you will have agony beyond anything that physical pain could offer, but this will allow you to grow and fulfill even what I could not._**

A million more questions assaulted the young man at once and all fought to be answered. _Who is she? What do you mean I'm not real? What truth? What have I denied? Suffer? How will I grow? What?_

**_Confusion…All of this is still beyond your understanding, but you will gain knowledge soon; maybe too much for even your liking._**

_So then tell me what all of these ominous comments mean, dammit!_

**_It is not time, as I said, you will find out soon enough. For now though, our talk at its end. We will meet again-be again, it is inevitable, but at the moment you must wake up. Your fairy tale must finally come to an end, "Kaleb"…_**

/Kaleb./ Another voice, softer and far sweeter than any other-if not burdened, resounded in his mind. /_Kaleb, please get up…_/

The man was suddenly flung into a bright light as his eyelids hesitantly slid upward and he was again staring at the dull interrogation room. He grunted as he willed his hands to press down on the icy metal bottom of his cell and lift his heavy frame up, but swore as pain attacked his burdened limbs once more and forced him back down. Kaleb heard a distressed sigh as he ignored the unbearable pain and continued to rise.

"Don't strain yourself anymore than you need to," Bastila chastised, but her tone clearly concerned, "you might not be fully recovered yet. That wretched guard continued to torture you even after you passed out."

"Really?" He groaned as he managed to slide himself into a reclined position, leaning the rest of his body against the back of his cell; it refusing to cooperate with his brain as it no longer had the ability to move. "Didn't think the grunt had it in him…" He trailed with a creeping smile.

She glared at him from his carefree reaction. "Why is it that you always find yourself being on the brink of death comical?"

"I'm sorry," The man tried to shake his head, but failed miserably as the motion turned out to be more of a weak flop of his head, "I find the fact that we survived the encounter extremely rewarding." He forced his eyes to look at her as they scanned her figure for the slightest mark. "You ok-he didn't hurt you while I was out, did he?"

"No." Bastila answered definitely, sensing that he would deem himself a failure if the answer did not seem sure enough to him; even if it was already the truth. "He didn't harm me physically, just like Saul ordered, but…seeing you repeatedly electrocuted like that even after you had blacked out…" She trailed with apparent difficulty from the mere thought of the scene.

"I know." Kaleb commented empathetically. "I couldn't stand it either when Saul electrocuted you…every scream a brutal stab to my heart."

She couldn't stop the swell of emotion that she had buried deep inside herself for so long, and the warm tears that accompanied it, welling in her eyes. "It…it was just so…_horrible_, Kaleb. I begged for him to stop-told him that his point was already made clear, but he was just some sadistic…_monster_; gaining satisfaction from seeing you suffer and the effect that it was having on me."

"Hmm…I wouldn't expect the lackey of Karath to be a ray of sunshine, but even I can't believe that the sith were so arrogantly ruthless that they would needlessly raze a whole planet…I'm really sorry, Bas. I know that Dantooine was your home."

She nodded sadly. "_Yes_…there is a selfish part in me that feels grief from the Admiral's words, despite everything that we have personally suffered." She sighed, "I actually am taking the news of its destruction quite hard…first Taris is obliterated and now the Academy: can there be no end to the killing?"

"Not until we reach Malak and even then, someone will have to die." Kaleb responded as he closed his eyes jadedly. "Even though I was only there for several weeks, it's…hard to believe that all of those civilians, padawans, and masters are all just _gone_."

"I would love to hold on to the illusion that Saul was lying to us to sate his own twisted desires, but even as he said the words, I knew them to be true. The Academy…has been lost." The woman looked at him, worry overtaking her features. "We both should have felt a disturbance in the Force when the attack came-the fact that we did not is a bad sign."

"Yeah…" He suddenly opened his eyes, "you're right. All those force sensitives dying and we didn't sense a thing…how can that be?"

"I fear that…the dark side is becoming stronger; casting shadows that even our vision cannot pierce. I can only hope that some of the Jedi escaped. Vrook, Vandar, Zhar…I cannot imagine all of them being murdered." Bastila told him as she sat down in her own cell and wrapped her arms around her knees. "In any case, we have lost our one place of refuge in the galaxy."

"Well, I wouldn't exactly say that." Kaleb smiled softly, "I still have you and you sure as hell can't get rid of me, so we'll both be each other's refuge…at least until the two of us can find somewhere permanent to stay after this mission."

His smile was contagious as always as her mouth quickly mimicked it. "I would like that…but what sane planet would let us live there? Almost every world the two of us have been on has been destroyed: we're not exactly the citizens people would actually want to have, you know."

"Then I'll discover our very own planet and name it after you…unless," He reconsidered thoughtfully, "it's an ugly planet. Then I'll name it after the Admiral."

The woman's laugh was abruptly interrupted by the loud whoosh of the door to the area they resided in as they saw a Sith soldier with rifle in hand. Kaleb's eyes narrowed with fury until the man unexpectedly fell forward and collapsed on the ground; HK's copper colored metal form seen looming above the fallen figure.

_Pleased Declaration: Master, you do not know how satisfying it is to see that you have not expired before I completed my given task._ The droid entered the room, carrying several red packs in one mechanical arm. _I had no doubts; however, you are more than efficient to be overcome from such lowly tactics of torture._

Kaleb chuckled, relieved that the droid had made it. "Yup, it'll take more than that to take me out the game, but you're no eyesore yourself." He glanced at his bond-mate, "See Bas, I told you he would rescue us."

She scoffed. "I'm still reeling from the shock of it all."

"That's her way of saying thank you, HK." He grinned, "Anyway, how were you able to get out?"

_Modest Answer: Oh, Master, it was nothing that challenged my programming. When I first re-activated, I had to kill the technician that was attempting to disassemble me-a simple matter as the technician was not skilled in combat._

"Very nice break you got there."

_Statement: I suppose, Master, but I am sure that I could have eliminated him in any situation: all of you meatbags are so predictable. Summarization: Simply, I found a smuggler Rodian who, in exchange for his freedom, gave me a useful device called an icebreaker._

Kaleb was astonished. "I didn't even know those things really existed, but if you actually got one that worked, breaking through the sith's defenses would be effortless."

_Confirmation: Correct, Master. I eliminated two more guards in a computer room and used the panel to open all of the prisoner's cells, knowing that more soldiers would come to put them back in. As soon as both prisoner and Sith were all in the same place, I executed riot mode and poisoned them all._

"So, in short, you killed every single soldier on your way to us?" Bastila asked intolerantly.

_Irritated Response: Well, it loses the elegance of my brilliant strategies when you put it so bluntly, female organic, but you are accurate._

The man shook his head. "What am I gonna do with you two?" He sighed, "Bas, even though his actions were extreme, he got the job done and HK; she's just impatient to get out of her cell. You mind helping us out with that?"

_Statement: I would be failing in my duty if I did not, Master._ The droid answered as it approached the panel and pressed two buttons, with its free hand, that made the yellow force fields on their chambers fade away. _Extrapolation: I am sure that you would want to properly equip yourself also, so I also took the liberty of finding the room where they kept all of the items the took from you: it is to the left of this area. It is incredibly defective to place all of your enemy's things in one place, but what more could I expect from these Sith meatbags?_

Kaleb managed a successful nod as his body was feeling a bit better after somewhat healing itself, but Bastila once again noticed the red parcels in his arms.

"HK, what you have there…yes, those are life support packs, aren't they?"

_Answer: Yes; I found them in my search in this level's medical bay and thought they would be efficient if Master or his companions were hurt._

"Well, your "Master" is hurt." She hurriedly secured a pack out of his metallic grasp, "and that's the most sensible thing I've seen you do during this whole mission." She speculated as she came back over to Kaleb, kneeled in front of him, and opened the medical kit. "Here-this should help your burns heal a bit faster; not to mention make them more bearable."

"Hey, HK," He called out to the droid, "I want you to free the rest of the crew. Also, supply a life support pack to anyone else who needs it."

_Statement: I will do as you say, Master, beside the fact that competent meatbags should be able to escape by their own means, as I have done._

The man just chuckled as he saw HK-47 take its exit. "_Dammit_, I love that droid!"

Bastila rolled her eyes as she tore open a plastic packet filled with some sort of thick, greenish salve. "And as long as I live, I will never know the reason why."

"Well, it's helped us out of some pretty tough spots on our mission…but I, of course, love you more." He smirked at her lewdly. "HK can do many things _for me_, but it could never do the things that you do _to me_." He cringed as a soft groan of disgust exited his lips. "And if it could, that would just be creepy on so many levels of wrongness."

"Congratulations; you've perfected the art of being a hero, a pervert, and a fool at the same time-and on a Sith Indictor ship, no less."

"Kaleb at his finest." The man said to her and beamed proudly.

She scooped up some of the goop and spread it over a large bleeding burn over his chest while he shivered from the unexpected cold on his warm skin.

"_Ah_-that's freezing!"

"Oh, stop complaining; it's just a bit of ointment."

"Yeah, but…_it's cold_." He whined pathetically.

The woman rolled her eyes again as she continued to administer the healing balm on top several other burns, but was already annoyed when she saw that smirk reappear on his face.

"Don't do it." She warned.

"What?" He questioned innocently.

"You know what you're about to do."

"I was only noticing that this is the second time you've wanted to play medic with me, Bas. _Ah, the memories_." He winced as she added more pressure than was needed to the last of his injuries. "Still as feisty as ever-_I love it_."

Bastila scoffed, but her eyes strayed away from him as she paused cautiously. "A disturbance in the Force…I was able to feel it this time. The Admiral has sent his message-Malak is coming." The woman rose from her crouching position and tossed the empty packet aside. "That should make you more comfortable, but we need to go. We have yet to obtain our items and we need to leave this ship before he arrives."

He nodded in affirmation and the two of them made their way to the room on the left of the one they exited, as HK told them, and sure enough; there were rows of plasteel cylinders and lockers that surely contained their equipment.

Bastila was first to open the nearest locker and smiled when she saw their clothes. "Oh, thank the Force. I would definitely prefer being clothed when we meet our companions."

"Yeah, I would prefer it too." Kaleb told her as he could only imagine what his other male companions would say and do, but suddenly groaned as he stopped digging for his lightsaber. "But, damn, that means no more free peeks of you half naked for me either."

She shot him an exasperated look as she tossed him his clothes. "Just…_hopeless_."

He grinned as he caught them to his chest and started to redress, but made sure to add some decent chest armor underneath his leather jacket for decent protection. As soon as he was finished, the man once again reclaimed both of his lightsabers.

"Oh yeah, I'm back in the game now: got my sabers." Kaleb directed to a fully dressed Bastila as he activated and effortlessly twirled his weapons. "_Ooo_…feels good to have 'em back home where they belong."

She already had her deactivated double lightsaber clipped to her belt as she added a few grenades to its small pockets.

"Hmm…Destructive Bas." He commented as he snatched up some grenades of his own and filled his individual utility belt; piling some medpacks into his knapsack. "Very cute."

"If you're done, we should regroup with the rest of the crew." The woman replied as she finished her preparations.

He had a comeback, but was silenced by the entrance of a slightly limping Carth into the room.

"Good to see that the two of you are still looking good." His brown eyes hardened as they shot to Kaleb. "But it seems that traitors always survive longer than they should."

The alteration in the younger man was immediate and conspicuous as his body tensed when it edgily turned to approach him, light honey eyes now enhanced only by the sinister detachment they held. "If you have something to say, Carth, say it-but only a coward evades the issue."

"Oh, so now I'm the coward?" The pilot aggressively pointed to him, roughly poking his chest. "You're the one who gave answers to a Sith Admiral that could doom the whole Republic and if that's not dastardly; I don't want to know what is."

"My "dastardly" actions protected the person who means everything to me, no matter what the cost." Kaleb growled as he suddenly caught the man's finger with his hand and harshly flung it back to him.

"That cost could be the entire galaxy falling under the domination of Sith rule!" Carth spat back, "There was too much at stake for you to let some…_impulsive infatuation_ influence your thinking on such a crucial matter!"

"Both of you-_stop this_!" Bastila demanded to the two as she witnessed their hotheaded displays. "You are taking anger out on the person who was not the one to bring it out in the first place."

"How dare you judge me?" Kaleb questioned scornfully as both men ignored her command, a scowl forming; depicting the rage he felt inside from such foolish impertinence. "Do you even know how difficult it is to be put into a position like that-given that choice? To know that mere words could save the reason you live or condemn you to death by your own heart?" Hatred overtook his narrowed eyes, "What has this galaxy done that makes it worthy to save, Carth? Why should I be the one forced to have such inhuman benevolence to populations that can already destroy themselves without help from any evil entity?"

"I might not have the answers to those questions, but I damn sure know that if I had been in that position, I wouldn't have betrayed the Republic like you so candidly did."

"Of course not…" The young man trailed with so much abhorrence to the man's loyalty to something that truly didn't care for him, "you would have left someone you loved to die as a weakling would. _Just like you did before_."

Carth was about to lunge at him, but Bastila stopped his attack as she intercepted and quickly used the Force to restrain the man; placing the palm of her left hand on Kaleb, as he was already to defend himself, while she pushed him back also.

"The Admiral was toying with us all, Carth-I could sense it, see it in his eyes." She explained with as much composure as she could grasp at the moment. "Kaleb hasn't told Saul anything that the Admiral didn't already know. He wouldn't be in so roguish of a mood if he desperately needed our responses for his cause and only wanted to justify his reasons of playing with us before Malak got here." The woman released her hold of the pilot and let her other hand fall to her side. "But disagreements or no, the two of you need to put this behind you until we have successfully made it off this ship. We don't have time for petty arguments when a Dark Lord is even now on his way to us!"

A glare stayed on Carth's face as he brushed past the opposite side of the woman wordlessly and headed towards the opened locker that held his clothing.

Kaleb's eyes narrowed with spite as he headed out of the room. "I'm done here then. I'll go and check on the rest of the crew."

The man scoffed at the pilot's 'self-righteous' antics as he continued walking; beyond pissed from the fact that he thought himself better for trying to protect a hypocritical Republic, but felt a slender hand gently grasp his shoulder in an attempt to stop his advance.

"Kaleb…"

His brow furrowed. "I don't even care about it anymore, Bas-like you said, we need to squash the matter until we get out of here and I don't even want-"

"Thank you." She responded unexpectedly, cutting him off from his rant as he turned around to her, mystified from her sudden gratitude.

"_Wha_?"

"I know that…when you were being interrogated I told you to stop answering Saul's questions because of our mission, but…" He saw her hesitate once more, an apprehensive aura coming off of her as if she was battling something inside, "I couldn't control myself as my mind forced the words out, but when I heard them, when my heart heard them…_so aloof_: much more machine than person. I…I actually had to question myself: "Is this truly what a Jedi is? This cold, unfeeling thing even towards the one possession she wishes to protect above all else?"

Kaleb shook his head as he sighed. "Please, don't blame yourself, Bas…"

"But you…you put me before anything else-anyone else. _Why do this?_-because you love me." She continued as if he hadn't said anything, "Logic laughed at your so called reasoning, thinking you foolish to put a single life in front of billions for such reckless passion, but you kept your oath to me to the end-words are fleeting, but _you_…" Her eyebrows creased with conflicted emotion. "_They're so dangerous_…these feelings I have for you because after my mind instinctively defended our mission, you looked at me with so much pain in your eyes and…I was completely stunned-I couldn't move, couldn't think, but only feel your anguish: the complete desolation you felt about risking innocent people's lives, but this tyrannical emotion that you felt towards me and my personal well-being taking over. My mouth couldn't say anything else against you or your ideals…such selfishness and altruism combined inside me at the same time, the same as it was in you. I found myself worried about the galaxy, but in my own state of felicity that you did not let the Admiral torture me." Bastila sighed haltingly, as she tenderly brushed her fingers along the side of his cheek, eyes drinking in his. "I needed to tell you this-before my brain objected or engraved customs interfered, no matter how horrible a side of myself may think me for saying it…thank you for caring."

Kaleb exhaled as if a horrible burden had been lifted off his shoulders and smiled at the woman. "_Wow, Bas…I mean…_" He trailed in awe; "I think that's the first time you actually thanked me for saving your ass. There were a lot of times, _a lot of times_, where I rescued you from overwhelming danger, but you actually swallowed that grape flavored pride pill…_for me_." He concluded in a silly voice. "_If mama could see me now_."

"That's very nice, Kaleb, and I'm sure you're mother would love to know that her son has yet to grow up." She retorted with irritation from him not taking her seriously.

He nodded dumbly after a brief pause. "Yeah…probably: she had high hopes for me." He smirked, "But seriously, since you love me now and everything, I mean how you could not-I'll never know, but I digress…truthfully, it totally turned you on when I saved you all those times, right? Being all heroish?"

"_Sure, Kaleb_," She droned to get him to shut-up, "now that you're done being all "heroish" we can concentrate on getting out of here." Bastila said burying the true depth of her feelings from him, "And for your information, seeing you tortured, even for my sake, wasn't a turn on. You could have been permanently wounded…or damaged in less _manly_ ways."

The way she said manly, both knew what she was referring to.

"_Addicted_!" The man fake coughed as he grinned. "But no-Bas, you know what would be hot? Like super hot? Like…lightsaber hot?"

"What Kaleb…you on Tatooine roasting in the sun while I'm on Manaan sipping Corillian wine?" She suggested as plainly as she could without snorting at the sight of him frying in the suns…gaining a tan line…or better yet, no tan line at all…No. The woman shook her head, trying to rid herself of that horrid thought after just having coming out from torture; was she that…_lewd_?

"Oooo, you're such a pervert, Bas." He acknowledged amused when he saw her ruffled expression. "I mean, I'm here trying to save the galaxy from an evil dark lord and you're only thinking about jumping my bones." He sniggered, "Though there have been worse thoughts…"

"Jumping your bones?" Bastila asked, playing dumb; hoping the brain cell in his mind would tag along, "_Why-what-ever-do-you-mean_?" The women asked in an extremely old tone from a particular era on a planet she had once read about in Jedi history.

"What-I-mean?" He questioned, trying to copy her, "I-mean-we've-been-literally-knocking-boots-for-about-two-moon-phases-and-messing-around-way-over-yonder."

"Kaleb," She started off sweetly, "I know that you want to out do me, but some things just aren't possible for one of your…brain power; you made a horrible attempt, and I still don't admire you for it."

"Oh well." He stated casually with a carefree shrug, "We can't all be geeks-somebody has to be the sexy jock hero stud muffin who can cook in this universe."

"Let's not forget afraid of water, cocky, and just down right…hmm, what's that word…selfish." Bastila told him as she stormed off at her final word.

"Hey!" Kaleb called out humorously as he fast walked up to her. "I'm not those things…except for the first one, but dammit, I had a traumatic episode on that stupid fish planet!"

"Well, that doesn't give you the right to just label everyone else as inferior." She told him as he swung her around. "Just because we can't all be the great Kaleb doesn't mean we don't have feelings and…and…_and_…" The woman stumbled, as her train of thought collided with her heart.

"_Whoa now_…where is this coming from?" He asked concerned as he placed a comforting arm around her waist. "Last time I checked, you were the badass jedi who could make whole armies give up wars or win them with overwhelming odds just with your thoughts. Do you even know how cool that is?"

"_But…but…_" Bastila started off in his chest, still warm despite the breastplate he wore, sniffles being smothered, "you could have died in there and…what sense does it make to have the ability to beat a whole Sith army-in having so much power, if I lose you in the process?" She admitted to him, emotions as raw as the pain that once flooded through him in that torture chamber.

The man was in shock…he had never heard her so frank, so vulnerable: willingly ready to gain support from him.

"Hey, don't even think like that, huh? I'll always be here for you-no matter what gets in my way. Nothing in this galaxy could ever take you away from me." He kissed her tenderly on her forehead as a soothing hand ran down her hair. "Like I said before, there's no way you can't get rid of me so easily."

Sniffling was the only sound emanating from her as both sides opened their bond, which had been tightly sealed before. "_Thank you, Kaleb…_" She responded once again, not knowing what other words to utter that could properly express her feelings as her emotions were again driving her more than reason.

"…Welcome." His heart felt as if it would burst when he felt the amount of love flowing from her.

This might have been inane now, but there was always the fear that she didn't really need him. That the man was just some phase she was going through until she would leave him for the jedi and never come back. She called him cocky, but he had such horrible insecurities; always wondering if he was good enough, if he could continue to be better than the Order she left him for, to prove his worth to her and truly show that he could offer a better way of life.

"Kaleb…" Bastila called out softly, feeling his own troublesome burdens. She had never known about them, the hurt and trials he faced everyday…because he thought she would choose the Order over him! Her mind was only beginning to wrap around all these new thoughts, but he darted his eyes behind her and then quickly back to show that their moment had come to an end as Canderous entered the immediate area, Repeater blaster ready for battle.

"If you lovebirds could pry yourself away from each other for five seconds, maybe you would realize that we're still on a Sith Indictor ship!" The Mandalorian barked rudely as he walked away from them. "Save all that mushy crap for after we're outta here!"

Understanding, Bastila rose on her toes and give Kaleb a quick peck on the lips "We'll talk later about this…_lover_." She added the later part so silently that only he could have heard it, and even then only as a whisper while she solidified her choice of him over any council.

He grinned widely from her comment and nodded, but his expression diminished when he spotted a grim Carth exit the room their equipment was in, fully donned with a newly upgraded armor and modified personal blaster while having an Echani one in his other hand.

"Since it looks like all of us have acquired our stuff," The pilot started as he eyed everybody, "we need to get to the main bridge controls; that's the only place where we can open the docking gates of the hanger where they've got the Ebon Hawk."

Bastila sighed as she rubbed her temple. "We better get moving then. I can already feel the darkness of Malak's presence approaching, and I don't want to be here when he arrives-none of us is a match for the Sith Lord."

"Then the answer's pretty simple to me." Canderous stated impatiently, "Let's just blast our way to those bridge controls-it should be easy between all of us."

"No, surprise and secrecy will serve us best." The Jedi argued. "A small group might have a better chance of sneaking onto the bridge undetected while the others make their way down to the Ebon Hawk to ready it for a fast getaway."

Carth squeezed the handle of his blaster that was in his belt's holster. "Count me in, then. I've got a score to settle with the Admiral before we get off this ship and I have a feeling I'm gonna find him on the Leviathan's bridge."

"_I wanna go too_!" Kaleb whined as he waved his right arm wildly, wanting to add something to the conversation.

Bastila rolled her eyes as she smiled. "That's actually a good idea. The others can get to the Ebon Hawk on their own, but Carth and I might need your help."

He smirked. "Well, I do lend my talents wherever they're needed, but yup, that sounds good. The three of us will make our way to the bridge while the rest of you head down to the docking hanger."

Jolee nodded. "Sounds like a solid plan, kid."

"Yeah, but…unfortunately, all of you are going to have to deal with your own guards."

"Don't you worry about that-I know how to deal with their kind." Canderous assured him confidently. "They won't know what hit 'em!"

_Statement: You should have no troubles on this floor, Master; I have made sure to take down any hostile life forms._ HK-47 informed Kaleb. _Helpful Remark: I had also heard, before I killed him, a captain saying something about an elevator that leads to the bridge. Because of this, I took the liberty of downloading this ship's schematics while I had the use of the Rodian's icebreaker. I can input them into your personal datapad if you wish, Master._

The young man grinned. "Thanks, HK, very good work." He handed the droid his personal datapad as it loaded the data. "A layout of the ship would be invaluable so we don't waste time looking around or running into enemies that we don't need."

_Statement: You are welcome, Master. The elevator that I mentioned before is just down a hallway after a right turn._

"Right, but the rest of you should go first and get ready for us. Here, Canderous." He handed the man his comlink out of his knapsack. "Use this to contact Carth's com and inform us of your progress."

"Yes, that would be helpful." Bastila agreed. "We'll meet you there as soon as we get those docking bay doors open. Just make sure the Hawk is ready to fly when we get there…" She sighed as she looked at them all, "and may the Force be with you."

The six took their leave after that, all quickly heading to the elevator to finish their part of the escape.

Kaleb chuckled to himself. "That was a cheesy little ending there, Bas-very anticlimactic." He suddenly placed both fists to his waist as he dropped into a mock-heroic pose. "And…_may the force with you_…but just in case it's asleep or out to lunch, you might wanna keep your weapons ready."

She scoffed as he laughed from his performance and the three of them headed towards the elevator themselves. "Shut-up."

"_Ok_." He concluded at length, as she shot him a dirty look.

There was a strong ding as a light on the large mechanical device flickered off and the rounded doors opened.

"Ladies first." The young man gestured as he held a hand out to the interior of the elevator.

Bastila sighed as she entered then him, and finally Carth.

"Alrighty…" Kaleb trailed as he noticed a level control device in a corner and approached it, "we need to go to the bridge." As he said the last of his words, he pushed the button simultaneously and the elevator immediately started to ascend.

"Man, I'm kinda disappointed." The young man commented as he leaned against the curved wall. "I thought that at least they would have music on their elevators-how can I possibly enjoy this moment without elevator music?"

Carth was about to open his mouth to reply, but was stopped when an audible vibration resounded throughout the area.

"My com…" The pilot quickly detached it from his belt and flipped it open.

_"This is Canderous. We're at the Ebon Hawk. Like we figured, it's under heavy guard, but don't get your underwear in a twist…we'll figure out a plan to get rid of them."_

The screen suddenly became black once again as Kaleb laughed.

"Well, at least he's quick and to the point. Either way, it sounds like they're doing fine. Speaking of…" The man suddenly ignited one of his lightsabers and jabbed it through the light that lay a bit above the doors; electricity crackling as a dinging sound slowly winded down to silence. "We don't need some bell making noise every time we reach a new level if we want to be fine ourselves. I'll go first and scout it out, you two stay here for the moment."

Kaleb carefully tiptoed out as the elevator doors opened and was surprised that he didn't see any enemies abruptly pop out to attack them. There was a bare metallic wall in front of him, but a hallway that split to his right and left. The man pressed his back against the wall to his left and carefully sidled against it to swiftly peer over the corner; there being a turned around Sith guard and another one, patrolling the hallway in the opposite direction.

Kaleb rapidly propelled his body back towards the elevator before the two Sith noticed his presence and made a motion with his pointer finger to his companions to come closer. The two got the hint as they exited the contraption as quietly as he did and approached them with weapons ready.

"_Shh…_" The young man whispered softly, "_we're gonna use stealth tactics for this one, so we don't get too much attention. Bas, you got an adhesive grenade?_"

"_Yes, why?_"

"_It's two guards on either side, but both of them have their backs turned away from each other and us. I need you to throw that adhesive to your right and, Carth; he'll be an easy target for your blaster while I handle the other one._" He told the pilot, despite the animosity that still lingered between the two of them.

Both of them nodded as Bastila and Carth stood across from him; the Jedi having the proper grenade in hand and the man with his finger brushing his blaster's trigger.

"_Go_!" Kaleb whispered sharply as he effortlessly plucked a frag grenade from his belt, armed it, and rolled it to the guard as soon as he turned around.

The Sith eyed the rolling brown ball strangely, but dropped his rifle when he finally recognized it. "Oh, _shi-_"

The rest of the man's sentence was cut off as the explosion flung his body to a bloody heap on the floor. Kaleb hurriedly turned around to catch that the other man was already hopelessly stuck to the floor in the globular bluish-white liquid and Carth quickly fired off a round to the guard's helmeted head before he could further defend himself; the extremely hot bolt easily piercing the shiny metal and killing him instantly as he fell also.

The young man smirked from the scene. "Well, I'd call the whole stealth thing a success, wouldn't you?"

"Don't you even think about getting complacent." Bastila warned him; annoyed from his arrogant attitude.

"Yeah, yeah…" He dismissed with a wave of his hand as he continued to the right of the hallway, "don't do anything that would get me killed-I got it." He gave her a thumbs-up sign to emphasis his point, but she was not impressed.

"I'm serious, Kaleb."

"I am too. I'm only gonna investigate ahead again to see who or what we have to deal with next."

Kaleb once again peered around the corner at the end to a guard ambling all the way at the end of the new corridor, but swore inside his head, when he saw another uniform unexpectedly appear from another passage in the middle of the long one he was staring down. He pulled himself back and flattened against the corner wall just in time when the Sith looked in his direction, but crept back to the spot he was previously in to see that the man had gone back from where he came.

_Damn_. He groaned quietly. _How can I take out one of them without alerting the other to come or hitting some alarm?_

As almost as if the gods had heard his frustrated musings themselves, a whirring noise became louder as a small protocol droid emerged while it turned the corner and stopped in the middle of the hallway as if looking at the man.

"Oh yeah, somebody up there loves me again." Kaleb murmured to himself as he smiled, "Come here my little repair droid."

Almost as if understanding him, the droid obeyed, slowly but surely; little wheels whirring as it approached him.

"Hey there, buddy." He greeted when it was finally around the corner with him. "Who's gonna be Kaleb's little distraction?" The man cooed, "_You are-yes, you are_!"

Kaleb kneeled as he kicked open an already tilting panel on the pack of the device and effortlessly pulled out and reconnected to wires to two other sockets; making the droid's interior sizzle with white sparks. He hurriedly closed the panel and gave it a push back in the direction of the first guard. The device was already programmed to momentarily interact with the nearest life form they saw and it was only a matter of time until he would see the Sith and his trap would be set.

/Kaleb,/ Bastila called to him impatiently/What are you-/

/_Wait for it…_/ He trailed expectantly.

The woman was quickly rewarded with a loud detonation filling the once silenced air, as her bond-mate dashed back to his spot against the wall after seeing his victory.

/I thought the point of your incursion was to not gain attention-why would you set off such a loud explosion in an open area?/

/Trust me, Bas; I wouldn't have done something like that if I didn't have a good reason. Just sit back and enjoy the show./

"What was that explosion?" A feminine voice questioned loudly, right on cue as the young man tried to restrain a grin. "Who's out there? What's going on?" She demanded harshly as she warily approached the source of the black clouds of smoke emanating from the middle passageway.

The Sith clutched her blaster shakily as she hesitantly turned the corner and saw gasped loudly when she spotted one of her comrades dead; horribly impaled with pieces of scrap metal on different parts of his body.

_That's my cue. _Kaleb thought as he used the Force to augment his speed and dashed down the long hallway, all but a blur to any normal eye.

The female soldier didn't even get the chance to turn around to the sudden noise as he was already behind her with powered saber; the deep blue blade of energy eating away at her armor as it jutted through her upper body. The young man unflinchingly deactivated his saber as he pushed the now limp body on top of the other skewered one with a dispassionate expression on his face.

He was about to tell his companions to come on, but was silenced as he heard the sound of many approaching feet. He turned around and saw five more soldiers appear from a corner down from the very end of the hallway.

"I kill some of them and all of you come out of hiding-you bastards will never learn."

"That's one of the captives!" One of them yelled to the others. "Make sure that he doesn't make it off this level alive!"

Kaleb scoffed as they all automatically started firing on him, but he snatched up his other lightsaber and activated it; efficiently deflecting all of the blasts that would prove harmful to him between the two of his weapons. The young man's eyes narrowed as he quickly slanted his right saber and redirected a particular bolt right through the neck of one of the soldiers; the Sith thrown back from the force of the impact as he chocked on his own blood.

After deflecting several other blasts while steadily moving towards the guards, his eyes widened when he saw a vibrant yellow double lightsaber claw through the air in a deadly spin-the weapon instantly decapitating another soldier from his abdomen to his upper thigh as the two halves of his body sloshed to the floor; the lightsaber returning willingly to its master's hand as Bastila caught the middle of it smoothly. Kaleb smiled as he knew that the woman had restrained herself from not attacking him instead, but even more from the evident hesitation of all the guards.

"Let's see if your Jedi tricks save you from this!" A Sith suddenly yelled as he armed a plasma grenade.

"Fall back, Kaleb!" Carth yelled as the man closed on eye to aim and let out a single blaster bolt.

The young man pivoted and began to run towards his comrades, before leaping towards them as he saw that his time was rapidly decreasing to get away; the shot that Carth had fired passing him in the other direction as it hit its target of the plasma grenade in the Sith's hand. Another fiery explosion blasted through the narrow hallway as all three of the escapees fell to the ground in cover.

Kaleb coughed, brushing himself off as he stood up. "That was too many levels of cool, Carth!"

The pilot let out a wheezing chuckle, "Well, I had to do something flashy after Bastila did the whole lightsaber thing."

Said woman also rose with a small smile as she realized that this was the two men's way of calling a truce to their previous argument.

"It was nothing too special." She commented nonchalantly as she reconnected her double saber to her belt.

"Aw, Bas doesn't know how to brag-that whole boomerang thing you did with your lightsaber was awesome! Damn," He pouted as his eyebrows furrowed, "I gotta do something cool too."

"Yes," Bastila commented dryly as her eyes fell on a discarded datapad, "because trying to take on five soldiers by yourself just isn't dangerous enough."

"Yeah-that's exactly what I mean."

She sighed as she collected the scuffed device and cleaned it off its screen as she read it. "Oh…well this is helpful."

"What is?" Carth asked her as he replaced his blaster into his holster.

"Simply, there's a repair station at some storage room airlock to fix the damage to the bridge's hull and that there are space suits in the armory."

Kaleb groaned. "That means the other passage to the bridge is messed up and we have to go outside to get around."

"Complaining about it won't make us through with it any faster." She told him as she stepped over some severed body parts and continued down the hallway. "And we definitely don't have any time to waste."

"I guess…" He trailed as he pulled out his datapad, "I'm surprised. The armory isn't that far from here. Let's do this."

After passing through the walkway that the soldiers they killed came down and going through some doorways, the three found themselves in another lengthy hallway that had three doors all together. Kaleb walked up to the first door with a smile as he tucked his datapad back into his pocket.

"This is the secondary entrance to the bridge, guys, but…"

"But?" Carth questioned back curiously.

"We still need our suits, which is actually near because they're in that second door over there to the left." Kaleb answered casually as he pointed to the area. "I'll just go and get the suits while the two of you stay here-there's no need for all of us to go to the same place."

"Think again;" Bastila quickly disagreed, "I've already seen what happens to you when you go off by yourself with those five soldiers and I'm not going to let your reckless actions put you in some danger you can't get yourself out of."

He smiled with a shrug. "Well, if you're so worried." The younger man glanced at the pilot. "You coming too?"

"Nope, I think Bastila is the only one who can handle you, so I'll just stick around here."

The man grinned at the pilot's comment as he held his hand to show his bond-mate to lead the way, the woman taking him up on his offer as she removed her double saber hilt from her belt and walked forward. As the door to the room across from them opened, both were relieved that no enemies occupied it.

"Well, I would've done pretty good so far." Kaleb commented with a hidden smirk as he opened some footlockers in the corner.

"Oh be quiet; you haven't even found the space suits yet and just because there aren't any foes here doesn't mean that you'll continue to be so lucky elsewhere."

He started a casual gait towards the other door after he was finished. "Well, you won't have to worry much longer, darling," His hand reached for the door's panel, "because, according to my datapad, the suits are right beyond this door."

Bastila's eyes widened when she felt a sudden and dark flux in the Force. "Kaleb, don't!"

The man's fingers didn't stop quickly enough as the two halves of the door slid apart and uncovered three Dark Jedi, all of them igniting their lightsabers as soon as their eyes met. The woman almost swore as she powered her own weapon, knowing that they were out matched and had the disadvantage of being caught without a plan, but was shocked when she heard her lover chuckling darkly.

"You know," He started as he ambled into the area, "I have to admit, you guys did take me by surprise-I didn't even know that you were behind there."

"We were sent to be a trap for you and your companions." One of the veiled Sith explained, with a jeering tone. "Admiral Karath had taken into consideration that you might escape and would be heading towards the bridge. He also knew that you would need the space suits in this armory to do so."

The one on the right laughed. "It seems that Sith logic has once again outwitted yours, Jedi."

"Is that so?" Kaleb raised an eyebrow. "Well, you didn't let me finish. It's not a good thing that I didn't feel your presence, especially since I was so close to you, because that means all three of you are nauseatingly weak and not worth my instincts time to pick up on." He tsked as he slowly wagged his finger disapprovingly. "_Poor, poor fuck-ups_."

"_Why you cocky little_-" One of the Dark Jedi yelled as he charged to the arrogant young man with his single crimson blade, but was unexpectedly thrown backwards as Bastila hit him full on with a wave of Force.

Her bond-mate smirked as he finally unclipped both of his sabers and powered them up as he lunged at the middle Sith who predictably blocked his left weapon's attack, but then pushed his saber against his as he managed to turn at an angle and cleave through the man's back; his other saber easily pushing the lightsaber that was in the dark Jedi's hand as he recoiled from the pain. At the new opening, the young man's second saber punctured through his stomach and met with the other to slice the man horizontally, his destroyed body descending lifelessly to the floor.

"That was a waste." Kaleb commented as he immediately looked to his companion's condition.

The woman had been engaged with the former Jedi whom she had previously knocked down, already having him on shaky ground as she barraged him with quick swipes with both sides of her yellow lightsaber. The Sith was brought to his knees as she planted all of her strength into a vertical slash, but Kaleb fell into a crouching position as he turned around from the scene and brought both his lightsabers up to block a failed surprise attack that was aimed for his torso. Stunned from the man's ability to prevent his hit, the Dark Jedi tried to retract his weapon, but was no match for Kaleb's speed as he dismembered his forearm and then decided to end this just as quickly as he rapidly slit his throat; managing to abruptly cut off his air supply as the Jedi fell to his side, hands covered with his own blood as he clutched the front of his neck.

"Stop trying to breathe." Kaleb advised coldly as he lowered his weapons from their offensive stance and deactivated them. "Your death will be less painful once you accept it."

His eyes suddenly looked up when he heard the sound of a heavy body dropping to a metal ground and saw a small pool of blood growing as it spilled from the Sith's cracked open head; a major impact evident from a specific lady's lightsaber. Bastila sighed as she once again joined her weapon to her utility belt, glancing from him to the back of the room.

"There are the suits." She replied as she pointed to them. "Now that we've found them, we should get to the bridge."

He gasped. "_What_? No, self-righteous declaration of how you were right about the whole enemy thing and I was too arrogant when I fought them?"

"We unfortunately don't have any time for it." She smiled as she headed towards the suits. "Rain check?"

"I'll feel horribly neglected, but…I guess I'll get over it." He told her, amused as he followed. "I did say that I had to do something cool."

Carth ran through the door with his blasters out, but lowered them when he saw the three dead bodies that littered the area.

"_Ok_…I guess I'm too late." He stated lamely as he placed his blasters back in their holsters.

"You didn't miss anything too special and you're just in time to carry your space suit." The young man assured as he started to pick up his own.

After the trio made their way back to the secondary entrance to the bridge, settled in the inner airlock, and fully secured themselves into their protective suits, Carth walked to the outer airlock door with Bastila trailing behind.

_"Hold on!"_ Kaleb's computerized affected voice called out to the two urgently as he turned around and bended over. _"Does this suit make my butt look big?"_

Carth laughed as he continued to open the door. _"No, it's just the security cameras; they add ten pounds."_

Kaleb barely saw Bastila shake her head through her blackened visor.

_"You just can't help yourself, can you?"_

_"I really can't; it was just too good to pass up. Besides, I'm the mood lightener on this grand mission of ours, or did you forget?"_

_"How could I when you remind all of us every chance you get?"_

_"Hey, it's not as easy as you may think. People expect me to say something funny, so I have to have a new joke for every occasion." _He smirked, _"Kinda like how you're lectures on my "reckless" behavior always has something new in it for me to ignore."_

She motioned a gloved hand towards him. _"Just hurry up, "mood lightener"; Carth's already outside."_

The two of them emerged into the frigid emptiness of space, and were automatically greeted by the loud zooming of a group of fighter ships roaring past. Bastila resumed her slow trot down the walkway, that was guided by small red lights, after the distraction passed and her bond-mate trailed her, mouth agape as he saw the breath-taking view.

The beautiful swirls of blues, browns, pinks, and purples of a large cloudy, untamed nebula reflected off of the silver metallic pieces of his suit as the billions of diamond-like stars that decorated their endless black backdrop danced gaily across his visor. A lone ship rocketed past from the opposite direction this time and disappeared into the brilliant golden illumination of a bright sun to his left.

Bastila noticed that Kaleb was no longer following her and turned around to see his frozen figure staring out at the sight in front of him.

_"Kaleb…are you alright?"_ She called out as she slowly turned around and started backtracking towards him.

He didn't respond as he kept his eyes where they were.

_"Kaleb?"_

_"Hey, Bas,"_ He finally said to her, _"did you look at this? I mean, really just stop and look at it?"_

Her eyes lingered on him a bit longer before she obliged and looked up: giving him an extended pause before answering. _"It's absolutely magnificent…so tranquil and calm with it's passive beauty."_

_"Yes…"_ The man trailed simply, satisfied with her response, _"when I look at it…no war or vaunted ideals even fazes it-we're so insignificant. This mind-blowing peace I'm talking about…we've discovered what every proper jedi aspires for on the outskirts of a sith indictor ship. The irony of it all…" _He chuckled softly, _"that's what's really priceless."_ He finally looked at her, the woman just barely able to make out the tenacity in his eyes. _"I want all of that for you too, Bas…"_

She was perplexed-what exactly did he mean by that? Did he want to give her the stars, the planets, the galaxy? If so, she didn't want any of it. Revan wanted the galaxy and never saw what was right in front of his nose as he ruthlessly crushed it underneath his heel…and she didn't want history to repeat itself: no, not again.

Kaleb shook his head as if hearing her thoughts, _"No, not the galaxy, love; too many vain men with biased ambitions have already tried to claim it, but my heart leads me elsewhere. I want you to have this uninterrupted peace…not be an object of war that selflessly has to give up their life for more strife-the death of an intricate soul can only lead to the death of others."_ She saw his heavily protected hand, ball into the closest he could get to a fist. _"I want so much for you to have a normal existence like everyone else, wish for you to have the carefree way of life that I dream about…to be able to star over."_

_"Kaleb…"_ She trailed through the emotion that burned at her throat from his extreme munificence; always putting himself second to her own happiness, _"that sounds wonderful, but I'll only start over if you're there with me. I never want you to think that I value any type of euphoria lifestyle or that extravagant conditions will give me joy; only you can give me what you said, Kaleb-everything else is nothing, means nothing, compared to you."_ The woman hoped with all her heart that he now understood how vitally significant he was in her life, how absolutely terrified she had become from knowing that she could in no way live without this man: casting away all others as he was now her sole reason to continuing fighting.

_"Hey, you guys!"_ Carth interjected before Kaleb could comment as his padded arm waved at them. _"What's with the hold up? We got to hurry up if we want to beat Malak before he reaches us."_

_"Yeah, he's right." _The young man agreed as he took her arm and began to approach him. _"We need to get out of here."_

Bastila and him caught up and a few minutes later, the three reaching the outer airlock door, undressing in the inner lock chamber as they gathered all of their weapons for use.

Kaleb took out his datapad once again and accessed the ship's map. "Ok, we're getting really close now-we're practically there. The bridge is right through this room beyond this door and to the left up a long corridor."

As soon as they entered the next room, six Sith troopers all turned their helmeted heads to their unexpected visitors.

"What the hell are the prisoners doing here?" One of the soldiers asked in a frenzied panic.

"The troops on the other level must have failed-slaughter them all!" An officer ordered callously as he took out a vibrosword. "They cannot reach the bridge!"

Carth quickly took the man's hands out with a sniper shot as his burned hands dropped the weapon, making him an easy target as he shot him in the chest. Kaleb eyes narrowed as he was already sick of all of these intrusions to their escape and he felt the Force bubble violently through him as he lifted both hands; two of the guards rose into the air simultaneously, armored limbs failing through the air. The young man closed both of his fists on the two Sith's life force as their bodies became limp and he tossed them both to the back wall.

Bastila had already dispatched one of the shaky men who tried in vain to gun her down, as she used his own bolts against him and spun with much force as she flung her double light saber through the last Sith's back before he could turn around to face her; the man's torso sliding off the saber as she called it back to her hand.

"Come on, we can't stop now!" Carth exclaimed to his companions as he already opened the adjacent door. "We're too close and we need to get to the bridge before any more Sith find us."

Both of them nodded as they all ran down the long passageway, Kaleb being the one to open the door: him ambling in calmly despite the solders and Dark Jedi that surrounded them.

Saul Karath walked down a panel to approach them, hands behind his back. "Very resourceful." He commented approvingly as he came to a stop before getting to close to the three. "I'll assume that you had some part in this, Carth; you learned your lessons well from me."

The Republic pilot glared at him viciously, one of his hands already having a vice grip on his personal blaster. "The only thing that you taught me was betrayal and death, Saul."

The Admiral scoffed. "Don't be a fool. I am giving you and your companions a chance to surrender. _A chance to live._" He emphasized clearly as his eyes roamed around the room of his guards. "Darth Malak himself is on his way, he will be arriving at any moment."

Bastila briefly closed her eyes and opened them again. "He speaks the truth, Carth. I can feel the Dark Lord's presence approaching."

"Let the bastard come, then." Kaleb responded daringly. "I had to meet him sooner or later."

Saul chuckled. "Malak will destroy you, but if you throw down your weapons now…I will think about asking my Master to be merciful."

"I've seen enough of Sith mercy!" Carth growled as he took out of both of his blasters and aimed them at the older man.

The Admiral cocked his head to the side in acceptance. "You always did like to do things the hard way." He sighed, "Lord Malak would have preferred live prisoners, but I guess corpses will have to do-_kill them_." He ordered with a wave of his hand.

After Bastila had immediately started to assault the two soldiers that were closest to them and Carth set his sights on Karath, Kaleb's first concern was the two Jedi that flanked Saul's right and left as one of them let out a barrage of electricity through his fingers. He Force jumped out of the range of the attack and landed behind the man; putting his Jedi accomplice in a stasis, so he wouldn't have to worry about any surprise hits.

The unfrozen one however, tried to use gravity to his advantage as his lightsaber came crashing down overhead. Instead of attempting to block it however, Kaleb dodged the attack and watched the Sith lose his balance as his weapon met the floor; the young man twisting his wrist as he gave a strong flick of one of his own sabers in his direction: gravity ironically working in the young man's favor as the Dark Jedi was slain by his own weapon, his unbalanced body falling unto it.

An intense heat singed Kaleb as a blaster bolt burned into his thigh, drawing his attention towards a crouching Saul who had fired at him and then resumed heated combat with Carth with his own blasters. The pilot had just shot a Sith that was foolishly charging towards him with a vibroblade, and ducked behind a metal column as multiple shots hit the back of it.

When the barrage was over, he slid from behind the blockade and fired on the Admiral, managing to hit his shoulder before he could fall to the ground and find cover.

Bastila used a wave of Force to fling two soldiers and a grenadier back, her free hand's fingers fumbling with her utility belt's pockets to obtain a grenade. Taking the first one that she managed to grab, she hurled it in the direction of the disoriented soldiers; all of them being frozen in place as chilling ice grew across the floor and climbed up all of their legs, gluing them to where they stood as they screamed in agony from the numbing cold. Kaleb had easily taken down the stasis frozen Dark Jedi, even with his leg wound, as he witnessed his bond-mate twirl her double saber like a boomerang once more; cleanly beheading every single one of the ice trapped guards, their legs remaining upright as their upper bodies flopped towards them.

Knowing that she was alright: Kaleb felt the anger well up inside him as he felt the agonizing throbbing of his wound and looked down to see that there was a charred gash that went as deep to his muscle tissue; blood already drenching his pants. Fearsome golden eyes locked on the Admiral, rage coursing through those orbs. He was the one who herded his crew like kath hounds, tortured him mercilessly back in that interrogation room, but worse of all, hurt Bastila physically and internally. Carth's revenge from his past or not, the man would die this day.

Said man was pathetically dragging himself towards a platform so that he wouldn't be in danger from Carth's bolts, but Kaleb held his arm out in his direction, palm faced out, as he felt the energy of his very life through the Force, but did not grasp it; that would be too easy. No, the young man connected his own string of energy with that of Karath's and willed the Admiral's strength to his-the outcome a sickly yellow-orange light emitting from his fingertips that engulfed the older man; taking his very own life force and improving Kaleb's own.

He closed his eyes as he felt all of his burns fully closing and the wound on his thigh eventually closing up as his tissues healed and reattached themselves. Saul gasped weakly when the younger man finally stopped, no longer able to move as he collapsed on the ground.

Kaleb gradually opened his animated eyes as they flashed with a raging wild gleam, and a thin, pitiless smile forming on his lips as all of his body wounds were fully restored.

_When had he learned to do that? _Bastila's blood ran cold when she saw those eyes-his eyes-staring down at Saul's still body; so very inhuman, deadened to the man's severe pain from having his very essence sucked out of him as her bond-mate was apparently satisfied with his new powers benefits.

"_Carth…_" Admiral Karath trailed feebly to everyone's immense disbelief as the man weakly flopped over to face the pilot he addressed, "_Carth…_"

"The Admiral…he's still alive?" Bastila questioned incredulously as she eyed the languished man.

Carth dispensed his empty ammunition and refilled his energy cells as he walked up to him. "Then it's time to finish this."

"Forget this, weakling, Carth." Kaleb told him as he could feel the life in the man depleting fast. "He's not worth risking our lives to Malak if we can't get out of here fast enough."

"_You don't understand…_" The older man trailed as all the hurt and anguish from his life, all the harsh and unforgiving years filled his being, "You don't understand what this man has done to my life." He turned around to glare at both of them. "You know _nothing _of the pain he's brought me!"

"And killing him won't ease that pain." Bastila explained to him calmly, trying to have him gain a level head about the situation. "Carth, listen to me. Do not become what you despise."

"_C-Carth…_" Saul sputtered once again as he coughed, "must tell…must tell you something." Karath coughed again. "_Come…come closer…_"

The pilot kneeled down to the dying Admiral, leaning his ear close to his old mentor's mouth. Both Kaleb and Bastila couldn't get a grasp on what Saul was saying when they heard only unintelligible whispers, but noticed, by the sudden change of shock to rage on Carth's face as he jerked away, it wasn't a good thing.

"_You…you didn't know, did you_?" Saul responded a bit louder than a whisper, as he let out a long wheezing laugh. "_Remember my dying words. Remember them whenever…_" He coughed once more but, softer now, "_whenever you look at those you thought were your friends!_" The Admiral exclaimed weakly, but victoriously as he laid his hands on his chest.

"No…_no_…" It was almost in low motion as Carth positioned his blaster over Karath and tugged hard at the trigger as the man's life force went completely out, "it-it can't be true." He said to himself as his breathing became heavy. "He said…damn you, Saul!" The pilot's finger pressed over the trigger again, as Carth's brown eyes were clouded with fury. "_Damn you_!"

Kaleb walked up to the man as he placed a hand on his shoulder. "That's enough, Carth. He's already dead and your family's revenged, but we gotta get out-"

The pilot abruptly turned around and shoved the younger man back, gun level with his head. "_You stay the hell away from me_." He ordered in low tone that clearly showed he was not playing around.

Kaleb was as furious as much as he was confused when he didn't see the man lower his weapon. "Carth, what the fuck is your problem?"

The older man looked at his bond-mate; gun still targeted on Kaleb as he stepped closer. "Bastila-it is true, isn't it?" His eyes narrowed, as he saw her pale, eyes widening with fear that he would say more. "And…_and you knew_! You and the whole damn Jedi Council-_you knew the whole time!_"

"Carth, it's not what you think." The woman told him as calmly as she could manage. "We had no other choice! Please, you don't understand-"

"_So make me understand!_" He barked at her vehemently.

"Carth," Kaleb stated with a dangerous voice, his fingers flexing as he could feel the Force flowing through them, "I won't ask you again. Now, I don't know why the hell you're freakin' out on me and Bastila, but it's going to stop-_now_."

Carth scoffed bitterly, "You don't know why? Why don't you ask your Jedi girlfriend to stop lying to you and give you some real answers?"

"What?" The young man looked at her and was shocked when she wouldn't make eye contact with him. "Bas…what is he talking about?"

"Not here, Carth." She pleaded to the conflicted pilot, as she continued with her refusal to make eye contact with the man she loved. "Please…there's no time-Malak is coming and I…this isn't the place. _Please_, I'm asking you to trust me. For just a while longer."

Kaleb's own head hurt as so many questions were buzzing inside of his head and none of them were being answered by either of his companions, but he was able to grasp two things that both pained him equally. This horrible conflict was happening because of something he did and…Bastila was desperately hiding this thing from him.

"I'll trust you for now, Bastila," The older man told her begrudgingly, slowly lowering his blaster from Kaleb's head and back to his side, "but as soon as we're off this ship, I expect some answers!"

Bastila gave him a relieved nod, "Of course, Carth. As soon as we get to the Ebon Hawk, I'll explain everything." She finally willed herself to look at Kaleb, a hidden pain in her eyes. "To both of you, I promise."

Kaleb decided to hold his own thoughts to himself, as he could hardly understand how all of this happened, and made his way to the bridge's control panel. The man noticed, before he was about to select hanger controls, their original destination.

"This ship…was going to take us straight to the Star Forge, but…" Kaleb pressed a few more buttons, but was only rewarded with a negative beeping sound, "it won't give me the exact location-dammit!"

Carth's eyes moved from him to the closed door. "Wait-what's that sound?"

"It's probably more soldiers headed our way." Bastila inferred as she heard the clunking of metal boots. "Kaleb, are you done?"

"…Yeah; the hanger doors are nice and open; let's move."

"Good; Carth hide on the other side of the door." She ordered as she pressed herself against the right side. "We don't have the time to fight them head on."

The door quickly opened as three troopers piled into the room, all of them raising their weapons at Kaleb like the woman had suspected. Bastila nimbly ran behind one of them as she did a downward cleave of his shoulder and flicked the other side of her saber through his hip; suddenly deactivating her lightsaber as she put the other two stunned men into stasis as Carth easily killed them off with a bolt each.

The trio did some serious backtracking as the headed towards the airlocks, re-suited themselves, headed back out the airlock and back in the inner one, un-suited, passed the armory to get back to the command deck, and ran through almost endless hallways as they made their way back to the elevator.

As soon as they were finally at the last corner until they would reach their destination, two Dark Jedi and a grenadier lay right in front of the door to the elevator.

"_Why won't all of you just roll over and die!_" Kaleb exclaimed, pissed off from all of these enemies as he pulled out one of his sabers, activated it, and flung it towards the Sith grenadier, using the Force to guide it, as it pierced through his stomach. "The two of you, get on the elevator and get it ready-I'll be there in a sec."

Kaleb rushed full speed towards the man, while his friends did as they were told, as he fell to his knees, planting his left foot firmly on the ground as his right leg received even more power from the added leverage and kicked the exact same spot where his lightsaber had impaled him; causing his upper body to be snapped at a grotesque angle. The young man didn't even retrieve his saber, as he activated his second one to block an attack made by one of the Dark Jedi, the other already getting behind him to take him down. Kaleb locked sabers with the Jedi in front of him and managed to push him pack, fell to the ground while deactivating his saber and twisted himself around with one arm, and brutally swiped the legs of the Sith behind him. The Dark Jedi descended backwards from being knocked off his feet, the young man calling the lightsaber that was in the grenadier's body to him as he once again powered the one already in his hands and made a neat slash of the airborne Jedi's legs before he hit the ground.

Kaleb's saber sailed through the air to its master's hand as the two weapons banged hard against the ground to give the man enough momentum to flip himself up; him activating his sabers as he literally pounced at the lone Dark Jedi, jabbing both of the azure blades into his chest, bringing them down, and curving them outward as the Sith's entrails sloshed in time with the body hitting the ground with a monotonous thud.

Kaleb didn't even bother to power down his lightsabers, as he sped to the elevator before any more of those Sith came out.

"Go!" He ordered as soon as he was in the contraption, and Bastila hurriedly pressed the button that would bring them all closer to their ship.

The young man finally gave himself the chance to catch his breath as his sabers receded into their hilts. He leaned his head against the curved wall of the elevator and closed his eyes to try to diminish the horrible throbbing on the side of his head, but gradually opened them again when he realized that they would need to know where to go. He pulled the datapad out of his right pocket and was relieved to see that it was a straight shot to the hanger after only one turn that you couldn't miss because there was only one door.

Kaleb was about to rely to information to the others, but decided against it when he saw Carth glaring at him with so much animosity in his eyes, the young man feeling the hatred roll off of him in waves and Bastila silently staring at a blank wall; her eyes away from him, but he was able to feel such an entrenched guilt trickle through what she had opened on her side of their bond; not even enough of a connection for him to even speak to her in her mind.

_Hatred..._

_Guilt..._

A firm vibration destroyed the unrelenting silence and knocked Kaleb to reality as he looked at Carth; the older man taking out his comlink and opening it without a word.

_"It's Canderous." The Mandalorian greeted plainly. "We took care of the guards. We're inside the Ebon Hawk and all systems are go. Soon as you guys join us, we can all get the hell out of here."_

The message managed to bring a small smile to Kaleb's face as it was great to know that all of them made it safely-now they just had to hold up their end of the deal. He pushed himself up while the elevator slowly came to a stop and the doors slid open.

"Alright…this floor is probably the easiest one. We just need to get to the end of this hallway, and then make a right to where the hangers will be."

The young man inhaled and exhaled deeply, before running out of the machine, his companions following close behind, and avoiding every door that plastered the walls to their right and left and opening the door at the end of the corridor.

Kaleb didn't even have the energy to remark as the room was filled with a Dark Jedi Master and his apprentice, a Sith wearing a captain's uniform, and four other grunts working on the ship. His mind quickly racked through every solution that would get him finished with this fight the fastest and, without hesitation, he chucked a thermal detonator at the soldiers who were all luckily bunched close to each other; managing to down them all in one shot.

Carth put the Jedi's apprentice on the defense as he was forced to block his shots and Bastila took advantage of this as a few rapid strikes brought the neophyte down. The trembling Sith captain was about to brandish his own sword, but gasped as a trickle of blood flowed down the side of his mouth and Kaleb flung the man's body harshly against one of the reinforced viewing window.

"Very impressive…for a Jedi." The Dark Jedi Master remarked amused as he held up his hand, electricity coursing around his digits and arm. "But can you compete with the full brunt of a true Sith's power?"

The young man grimaced as his mind automatically went back to the horrible tortures he endured earlier as he saw the feat; he knew that it was now time to give a little torture of is own. "That actually looks like fun-mind if I try it out?"

The man's eyebrow's furrowed with evident agitation. "You think that a simpering follower of the light like you could even grasp a power that steams from the dark side of the force?"

"Newsflash, dumbass." Kaleb announced coldly as he felt the pads of all of his fingers tingle, static sporadically appearing around them. "I don't follow the light."

The Dark Jedi's eyes widened from horror when he saw a huge current of electricity surround the whole man's body, his eyes just as shocking as they fastened on his; an assault of Force lightning sweltered the Sith alive as his smoking corpse dropped to the metallic flooring.

As the electricity around him calmed and died down, he resumed running to the exiting door, seeing Bastila and Carth in front of him. The three sped down the hallway, as the drab, grey surroundings transformed into vibrant, red areas: showing that they had finally made it to the hanger's location. The pilot opened another door as they hurried, but a blast door unpredictably opened, revealing a composed Dark Lord walking towards them as they all froze.

"Darth Malak!" Bastila exclaimed with a spiteful tone, but a tinge of fear from his sudden appearance laced her words also.

Kaleb saw Carth raise his blasters to the Sith Lord as he came to a halt.

"Down you go!"

"No, Carth, don't-!"

It was too late as the older man fired on him, Malak laughing haughtily as he deflected each and every bolt and effortlessly force pushed the man back as he roughly tumbled to the ground.

The Dark Lord gave one last scoff in Carth's direction as he slowly pulled himself together and stood up before he turned to the other two. "I hope you weren't thinking of leaving me so soon, Bastila." He commented with a deep, rumbling voice; slightly computerized by the metal jaw he donned. "I've spent far too much time and energy hunting down you and your companions to let you get away from me now."

Kaleb glared at the Sith Lord as he gripped one of his deactivated lightsabers threateningly, making sure to block Malak's passage to his bond-mate as he protectively stood his ground in front of her.

"I don't care if I have to take you down myself, but I won't allow you to touch her."

An almost questioning, if not humored eyebrow rose as Malak stared the young man down. "I have to admit; I found it hard to believe all of the rumors buzzing around about you and dismissed many as mere superstition-even now I can hardly believe my eyes, but I just had to see myself if it was true or not." As to emphasis his shock, he analyzed Kaleb, the Sith chuckling to himself as he even now saw the validity. "Tell me…why did the Jedi spare you? Is it vengeance you seek at our reunion?"

Kaleb tried not to show his complete bafflement at his question, not wanting to relinquish any signs of weakness to him, so he only snorted. "If you're talking about from their lectures, the jedi didn't do a damn thing. Second, you must have got knocked around too many times if you think I would wanna meet you more than once."

"_What_?" Malak responded in utter skepticism, not believing his ears, as he couldn't help letting out a malevolent laugh. "You mean you didn't know-all this time and you still haven't managed to figure it out?" Another chilling, mechanized laugh exited his throat.

_No…stop…don't…_ The words kept echoing throughout Bastila's head as the woman's body was paralyzed behind her lover's figure, her mind urging her to do anything in her power to put a halt to this, as her worst nightmare was unfolding before her very eyes. _You can't…anyone, but him…Force, please…not like this…_

"All this time?" The young man questioned back forcefully, despite her hopes, rage pulsing through his veins, as he knew that Malak was toying with him. "How about you quit fucking around and tell me what you really want to say?"

It was almost as if the Dark Lord had no metal substitute of a jaw when Kaleb could swear he could see a thin, satisfied smirk plastered on his face.

"I am tempted to let you remain in the dark, just to see how long you would remain blind to the truth…but surely some of what you once were and the legacy that previously preceded you must have surfaced by now." He stated tauntingly, enjoying seeing the man hang on to his every word whether he liked it or not.

A sharp, agonizing pain coursed through Kaleb's head as he stammered backwards, his saber falling to the ground as thousands of images barraged him in a flash, but his brain painstakingly seeing them all clearly. **_"I have always been inside of you, hidden by ancient techniques and antiquated customs, but even those could not fully embrace me and because of this, you have felt my presence while you were not as…alert; most memories that we've had."_** The subconscious inside him repeated as his fingers gripped both sides of his head; his eyes clenching tightly as the mysterious voice pounded over and over again, more clips of memories surging through.

"Even the combined might of the Jedi Council could not keep your true identity buried forever, could it?"

**_"You, a fractured half, to my once whole one. A single peeling off of my many layers-the obvious question that leads to an enigma, but in due time, you will find that even you will fade away."_**

The Sith Lord's dark eyes narrowed, a quiet bitterness affecting him. "They couldn't have so effortlessly effaced the character of the one who not only made their Order tremble: their ideals waver, but the galaxy submit willingly with mere words?"

**_Your fairy tale must finally come to an end, "Kaleb"…_**

Something inside the man gave way and violently snapped as he fell to his knees, his brain feeling like it was splitting into two as reality submitted to the shadows.

-----------------------------

"You can no longer hide from the truth or who you once were; hiding behind emotions to shield yourself from this pain." An impassive voice explained to Kaleb bluntly, his voice-clear without any altercations. "You must concede to the fact that you were once the Dark Lord of the Sith; acknowledge that you were a blight to Jedi everywhere, Revan."

The young man was absolutely stunned when he saw himself on top of an antiquated reddish-brown stone zenith: clouded, stuffy air blowing against his exposed skin, but even more so when he saw a mirrored image of his face looking straight back at him; albeit with unnaturally yellow-golden eyes, short cut hair, a clean shaven face, and, probably the most shocking of all, clad in a Sith's padded armor. He was finally able to see Revan…he was finally able to truly see himself.

"_I'm_ Revan…_y-you_?" Simple and abrupt, but the only thing that seemed to come out of the man's mouth without difficulty.

The other man…he walked a bit closer to himself. "Yes, we are."

"I can't-I mean, there's no…_how_?"

"An easy enough query to answer and after you open your own mind to the possibilities, you will see the simplicity of it also. You've always suspected it when you were burdened with my memories, but always found some excuse to cloud you from the obvious." Revan crossed his arms, as he looked beyond him and back into the past. "The Jedi set a trap-lured us into battle against a small Republic fleet. We knew their intentions, of course, but curiosity and intrigue that the Council would stoop to such a level, paved the way to battle."

"Kaleb" slowly nodded as the memory of the event flooded back with ease this time. "I had a vision of this…one of my first. During that attack, a team of Jedi Knights boarded our ship hoping to apprehend us; alive, if possible."

"And they succeeded; that strike team captured us and the Council used the Force to reprogram our mind: wiping away the very purpose that gives others the reason to keep living and turning us against the very ones who loyally followed us."

"Malak…I was really his master?"

"Correct, he was once your lowly apprentice, but had visions of grandeur and refused to simply tolerate his role as second best." Revan's eyes filed with resentment. "He betrayed us when the Jedi strike team boarded our vessel and ordered his personal fleet of ships to fire on our bridge. The fool left us for dead from that pusillanimous attempt."

"Why would he betray us though?"

"The way of the Sith ordains all who follow it: the strongest must rule if the foundation is not to crumble." The former Dark Lord scoffed as he turned towards a ledge, looking out at the barren view. "It was obvious that he would challenge us for supremacy-he had tried once before, but all were thwarted without any reasonable effort. I knew Malak to be ambitious, sneaky, and underhanded…but even I underestimated him to fall to such degeneracy of attacking us while we fought."

All of this was easy for the betrayed young man to understand, all seeming to click in his…they're mind as he accepted all of it, but there were two questions that he dreaded and yet yearned to ask at the same time.

_I__f he wasn't who he thought he was, wasn't real…_

"The memories I have…where exactly did they come from?"

"Hmm…the Jedi will claim that they restored our wounded mind, but they merely seized it with another falsehood-one less danger to their precious Order who was loyal to the faulted Republic." He noticed Revan balled his fist tightly. "The Council once again made us its slave."

"But why would they do that-who gave them the right to program us with another identity?"

"They couldn't restore me: I was too hostile-too much for them to handle on their own, but they needed our memories to lead them. Guide them to the Star Forge."

His anger was rising, boiling up to the surface from being nothing more than a tool. "They only saved us because of the valuable information that we had?"

"There could be no other." Revan turned around and faced him, a small smile on his identical face. "_Ah, yes_…learn the truth that I learned so very long ago: the Jedi are benevolent protectors at costs they cannot pay, they protect the weak by manipulating the innocent-you "Kaleb". You were simply a puppet to their "vaunted wisdom" and god complex; the risk that they had to take to draw out the secrets of the Star Forge."

"Kaleb's" eyebrows furrowed as he was once more assaulted with an ultimate confusion. "If I was a dark lord, scourge to the jedi themselves, why didn't the Council just-"

"Kill you, more appropriately, kill us? To lead you to such elucidation so straightforwardly would be a waste. You know the answer-search for it."

The other man paused as he tried to get a hold on what he was ordered to do. What did he mean search for it?

Suddenly, he saw Bastila, back on Kashyyyk as the two of them were walking towards Zalbaar, answering one of his many questions.

_"As I said, we were there to capture him alive, the Jedi do not kill their prisoners, his own former apprentice was the one who fired the killing blow."_

"They don't kill their enemies."

"Right; especially when we were so very important to their cause."

_"What greater weapon is there than to turn an enemy to your cause?"_ Her voice resounded in "Kaleb's" head, as he remembered another recollection from the last of Revan's words.

"That's…t-that's all I was to her…_Bastila_…" He trailed painfully, as his darker half evaporated into thin air and the surroundings around him faded away; the young man finally opening his eyes as he once again was in red surroundings, his companions behind him and the current Dark Lord in front; Malak pleased when he saw the familiar coldness in his eyes-the eyes of a murderer.

"Kaleb" couldn't even turn around to his bond-mate as so many raw emotions were rolling off him in waves. "_Bas…_"

The woman felt her heart stop when she heard his voice, feeling the complete emptiness that was in him as he had totally sealed his side of their bond.

"You…" He tried to complete the comment once more. "I wasn't…all of this-what we had was a…just a lie: jedi propaganda?"

There was a terrible gnawing in her chest as she felt his pain, the anguish he felt killing her one heartstring at a time. "Kaleb…Revan…" Bastila saw him wince from the use of his real name from her mouth, "After Malak had attacked you, your mind was badly damaged-most thought beyond repair, but I felt a flicker of life within you on that bridge, used it to preserve the force within you creating our bond. I brought you to the Council-"

"I don't care about the damn council, Bastila." He strained himself as he wanted to yell, his breaths became noticeably harder as he continued. "_I just…_" He inhaled shakily, "I know it had to be that bond that made the jedi decide you for this mission, that it was your duty that made you get through your moral issues with who I really was, but then…why did you…was I just another chore you had to deal with? Just a setback that you had to keep under control so you could keep up with your main mission?"

"Revan, no. I…I won't lie to you, not anymore, it did start off like that. I was just a Jedi and you were just another objective that the Council deemed to give me, a task that would give me renown with all Jedi if I were able to complete it…or so my vanity assured me." She admitted to him honestly, knowing that lying had gotten her here in the first place.

"So…you were just as manipulative as all the other ones…just using me for your own purposes…" "Kaleb" trailed to himself, as if understanding the truth for the very first time; his heart breaking more and more at every revelation. "You were the one person that I had actually allowed myself to trust-" The man turned around, letting all the suffering he felt inside hit her head on. "But that's not true either, is it Bas?" He retorted; becoming almost hysterical despite the guilt and personal pain displayed on her face. "Because there is no Kaleb, no trusting issues to have, no person to care for-no realness left to love!" The man exhaled raggedly and nodded stiffly, as if comprehending this whole situation with his inner musings with such rationality, it scared even him. "Tell the truth, Bastila; for once in the time you've known me…it was all just more jedi sympathy, wasn't it? Pity the poor bastard who lost his identity, pity for the innocent who had cute little memories that weren't his, pity turning into a cheap form of consideration…" He swallowed to moisture his already raw throat as he thought of the 'sincere' intimate moments the two shared together, his very soul perishing as his thoughts defiled them. "Us too…was it just pity sex? A _pity fuck_ to show the invalid that you weren't completely heartless?"

Force, he wanted to stop when he saw her deeply wounded expression as he added insult to injury; her bluish-grey orbs glazed over as he knew she was holding back the tears, not thinking herself worthy enough to shed them, but his tongue had a mind of it's own as it lashed out against her without remorse.

"That isn't the truth, Revan. You know it was more than that."

"How dare you come off as telling the truth? Do you even know what the word means?"

"I know that, mind wipe or no, you were always you-always real, and that person was the one that I had a wonderful friendship with; it growing into something more, that I never thought I would experience in my entire life. A love that surpasses any worthless title or haunted past."

"_Love? What love?_" He flung back at her abrasively. "The only thing that you loved was your damn jedi order! You'd do anything for it-give your own life or uncaringly destroy others!"

"That was all before you!" Bastila exclaimed back, having the strongest desire to lay down and die right now from the harshness in his tone; every accusation already a knife to her gut. "Before I knew what love actually was: had truly experienced how unbelievably beautiful it could be when everything I've been taught has been ironclad means to avoid it."

"How can you love something that's not even real? There can be no such emotion for something that can't even be, because I'm nonexistent! There is no Kaleb, Revan's been dead for years so what the hell am I, Bas? Where does that leave me after all of the lies and fabrications of that shitty council who thinks they can fuck with a person's life as long as it's for the "greater good"?"

"It leaves you in my heart!" Bastila pleaded to him with all that she had, desperate to make him believe, just this one last time to finally accept the one undeniable truth that she could give him. "It leaves you in a place where no other has trespassed-not even the Jedi- because I've opened and reserved it only for you…no matter what anyone may classify you as." She gently placed her hands on his broad shoulders, despite his tense response to her touch. "In the end, Revan or Kaleb, are only names-momentary words that show possession to the one who owns, but you're free of all of this now: whether Jedi, Sith, or in between-you are the one who solely decides who you really are."

The young man opened his mouth, but no words came out, all of the hurt from this ordeal was overwhelming in itself, but knowing that Bastila had been lying to him all this time, tricked him-it left a gaping wound that nothing in this galaxy could heal. His body betrayed him, a wretched tactic to evade any more pain, as he wanted to lean into the woman's touch, to embrace her tightly and denounce this all as a nightmare, or just take hold of her arm and never let go as they would run out of this place together, hand in hand.

"_That's why you wanted me to hate you…_" He finally uttered knowingly as he stared at the one person who could break him, "Back on Manaan, but even now…. W-why-Why can't I do it?" He yelled at her, losing control as he tried so hard to despise this woman. "After everything you've done to me-ruined a life I never even had and given me a love just to snatch it away!" Bastila felt despicable as she saw the helplessness in his eyes, even through the remoteness that had been unlocked in them. "Why is this," He beat his hand roughly against the left side of his chest, "begging me, with all that it is, to forgive you?"

"Kaleb's" eyes narrowed dangerously when he heard an unhurried clapping from behind, a sinister chuckle accompanying it.

"Very entertaining, Revan." Malak replied ruthlessly, as the one he addressed turned around to face him. "Here I was thinking that revealing your past would devastate you beyond measure, but pathetically falling in love with the Jedi who betrayed you?" He laughed callously. "Even I couldn't hope for such a cruelty to be dealt by fate: a revenge far sweeter then you'll ever know."

"_You gutless worm…_" The man trailed with pure contempt, as he reclaimed his fallen lightsaber; eyes burning as haunting yellow mixed with their golden color, "Only able to attack me when I'm down-an instinct from the past that you never let go off, Malak?"

"Your words do not hurt me, Revan, or plead to any sense of righteousness that you must think I possess. I simply saw an opportunity, all those years ago, and seized it when I ordered my troops to attack your ship, gaining the mantle of Dark Lord of the Sith in one brilliant stroke."

"A coward's ingenuity, at best," He replied, unfazed by his comments as he unclipped his other saber, "seeing as I'm still alive. Some sith lord you turned out to be."

"And you think this is because of your own doing?" Malak scoffed, "Such foolish and unrestricted narcissism. Know that it was the Jedi who took pity on you and saved you from the wreckage, erased all of your true memories, and made you a pawn in their quest for the Star Forge." The Sith Lord suddenly held a hand up to "Kaleb's" two companions, freezing both of them in a powerful stasis. "But there are those who might agree with you, thinking that I acted out of helplessness or was too scared to face you head on. Those opinions will be put to rest today." He brandished his own lightsaber, a powerful crimson beam emitting from the hilt: the hiss of it echoing the room as it grew. "We will battle in the old traditions of the Sith; Master versus apprentice, pure skill against skill."

"You don't know how long I've been waiting to _kick your ass_." "Kaleb" smirked as he powered and twirled both of his sabers as he made an X, bringing them apart as his left tilted into a defensive pose, parallel to his chest, and his right one all almost straight to the Dark Lord tilting forward slightly. "Forgive me if I enjoy the hell out of this."

"I see your overconfidence has not diminished in your absence." The other man commented as he made a quick jab, which was effortlessly evaded as "Kaleb" knocked the side of his saber out of the way, using the force from the hit to push himself in the opposite direction.

"Only because I have a reason to be cocky-unlike you."

Malak snarled as he charged at him once again, his strikes always hitting close to vital points, but far enough away to see that he didn't want this fight to end too quickly. "Kaleb" continued to block his hits, it made easy with his two sabers, but suddenly noticed that his opponent was purposely doing so to back him into a corner and take him down. The young man quickly went all offensive as he made a low hit the Dark Lord was forced to block and made a upward slice to his exposed chest; a gruesome scorching metal scar across the red material.

Malak laughed from his attempt to end this battle with that one strike. "Do you think me stupid, Revan? I am a Sith Lord, having the strongest technology in armor that was specifically made to resist a lightsaber's energy."

"A minor setback. I should have expected no less that a coward would want to hide in their shell." "Kaleb" retorted as he once again primed himself to strike, but swiftly circumvented around his enemy before making another attack at his knee.

The Sith followed his lead, as he expected, and parried it as they're lightsabers locked; Malak using enough force to make sure the he couldn't use his other weapon or risked being sliced mid-thigh. "Kaleb's" smirk just widened as the two broke away from each other once more.

"You find what will be your imminent death amusing, Revan?" The man barked when he saw his almost crazed expression, the thrill from their fight dancing in his eyes.

"I'm just proud to know that, while I was still your Master, you actually were able to learn something from me." "Kaleb" abruptly came upon the Dark Lord, forcing his lightsaber down with unknown strength. "Good to know that this fight won't be a complete waste."

Malak's eyes narrowed as he brought his weapon upward and held his saber over his head, but "Kaleb" only brought his other saber to aid his other as he knocked his enemy's weapon back; the slightly older man staggering back only a couple of steps as he let out a growl before connecting with his left saber with just as much power- adrenaline actively pumping through them both as sweat started to drip from both of their foreheads. "Kaleb" pushed against the man's lightsaber with enough effort to think he was resisting and waited until he would be pushed back down; the moment coming fast as he fell into his predictable pattern.

He quickly deactivated the saber Malak was pressing against and let it fall to the floor, the Sith Lord automatically losing equilibrium, and roared as his other saber made contact with his metal jaw, his head flying back while sparks and small pieces of it flew everywhere; the young man also taking his newly freed fist and delivering a punishing punch to the Sith's now exposed neck. Malak was thrown back a good feet from his hit, but "Kaleb" rushed towards the man and tackled him to the ground with his elbow before he could recuperate, lightsaber still in his right hand as he prepared to end this once and for all.

"Farewell…_apprentice_." He hissed as he brought the saber down, but was shocked when he saw the Dark Lord's sickly yellow eyes snap open and a great energy overtake him as he was roughly flung off the man and Force pushed into a wall.

"Kaleb" hurriedly stood to his feet despite the pain that was overtaking his body to witness Malak scurry into a blast door, an accomplished look in his eyes before it closed fully.

"_You fucking little-_" He exclaimed as he threw himself at the door, quickly noticing that it was sealed shut with no possible way through. "_You spineless son of a bitch!_"

The man pounded down the labyrinth of hallways, searching for any door that would open and finally found one on the other side of the area; it revealing the craven bastard breathing heavily, but calling him forward as his red lightsaber ignited once again.

"Kaleb" Force jumped to the Dark Lord, powering both of his weapons mid-air as he used their weight to crash into Malak's saber, his enemy managing to block his assault, but his arms wavering as he did so.

"_Once a weakling, always a weakling!_" The young man bellowed as he savagely thrust both of the hilts of his sabers into his former apprentices's gut, hearing him groan from the pain as he fell and slid across the ground.

"_Get up, you bastard._ " "Kaleb commanded harshly, the craving to kill this man overwhelming, as he came closer. "_I'm nowhere near through with your ass yet_."

Almost as if the Sith Lord was complying with his demand, Malak rolled on his side and let out another assault of Force energy on the approaching man and suspended him in the air; weakly closing his fingers as "Kaleb" started to choke.

The Dark Lord watched with satisfaction as he heard the young man's hacking sounds; his face becoming more and more red as the blood rushed to his head, but his eyes widened as he was thrown through the air by a lightsaber; the impact from the double bladed weapon fatal as Malak grunted when his back bounced against the hard wall of the room and his body slumped over as another deep gash was made along the metal surface of his thick armor.

"Kaleb" fell to the floor, as the grip on him was lost, frantically gasping for air and wondering how the hold on him had been broken, but not in the dark for too long as he saw a lightsaber sail behind him, her saber.

The man looked at Bastila as pained exhalations exited his mouth, the woman staring at him with as much suffering and guilt in her eyes as before, but a new resolution on her face as she walked towards him.

"You need to go." She stated unexpectedly, with an unusually firm tone-not a suggestion, but an order. "Carth is already coming; the two of you need to make your way to the Ebon Hawk and get out of here."

"_Wha-_" An unrelenting stinging attacked his throat, his rasping words still damaging the tender area, but he ignored it, "_What about…you_?"

"What about me? Malak must be stopped and here is the perfect opportunity." The woman explained plainly. "You and Carth will continue your search for the Star Forge and find its location, after you locate the last piece of the map on Korriban." She briefly looked away from him when she saw the Dark Lord began to stir. "Get up; you need to leave now." Bastila concluded as she tightened her grip on her lightsaber and began to walk away, but he grabbed her wrist forcefully, halting her progress.

"_Where the hell do you get off_?" His scratchy voice asked, the woman hearing the blatant rage in his question as he picked himself off the ground and glared at her. "_You think I'm gonna run away and leave you here because you tell me to? You might not be big on your promises, but I don't break mine-I'm not abandoning you._"

"You're not abandoning me because I am choosing to stay." She commented without looking back at him, "You need to keep going and continue the mission-"

"_Without you._" He squeezed her wrist harder and pulled her to the exit door against her will, his mind in conflict with his heart at the moment, but instincts unburdened.

The young man suddenly stopped, while both of them heard a groan as Malak shakily stood to his feet; Bastila snatching her arm from him while "Kaleb" was distracted.

"Here…" She brought her hands around the back of her neck and unclasped the necklace that hung there before he could interrupt her, "I can't hold on to this. There's just…too many memories with you when I look at it-the images too much to bear when I feel it on my skin…memories that…I'm not worthy of." She tied the gift around his wrist before their eyes locked again, the pain too much as she looked away once more. "_I…I'm so sorry_."

Before he could react, Bastila suddenly turned away from him and ran towards the Sith Lord as Malak finally opened his eyes: his crimson saber naturally blocking her as she continued attacking him with extremely fast strikes.

"Kaleb" just stood there-too dazed to go up there and stop her, too immobilized by her act to hate her for doing it, but felt a force forcibly pulling him away; the scene of her fighting the Sith Lord getting smaller and smaller until she looked at him one last time, it was almost in slow motion as she was mouthing something, probably about the mission or him needing to get out, before he saw Darth Malak raise his hand and the door slammed in his face. The motion of his body desisted as he felt something let go of him.

"Bastila…she's really gone." More noise filtered through, a masculine voice that "Kaleb" dully noted was Carth. "Malak must have used the Force to close it…a blast door-there's no way that we can get through."

The young man felt the pilot's eyes on his back, but couldn't say a word as he just stared wordlessly at the mocking red door.

"We need to get out of here…" Carth concluded in a low tone, as if broken by the moment himself, truly not knowing what would happen next, "make it back to the ship."

And then it clicked: horribly, loudly-mercilessly. Bastila was trully gone…she was in danger and this time, there was no way he could save her. The woman he loved was going to die and it was all his fault because she did it for him…would pay the ultimate price for him: a man who should've died a long time ago.

_Their bond so cold, desolate, emptiness…_

"_No…_" "Kaleb" uttered softly as he dropped to his knees, his palms placed flat against the cold metal in front of him. "No…" He repeated as his hands desperately searched for some kind of crevice that would lead to opening this impassable door. "_No!_" He roared as his fingers ruthlessly tore at the door now.

Carth watched the Ex-Sith Lord go into a frenzied panic, his fists beating against the door with every ounce of strength he had left, all the time repeating the word "No". A part of the man felt for him, felt the man's loss as he had experienced enough of it himself; losing absolutely everything in a matter of minutes…

_Such terrible anguish…_

"We have to get to the ship-meet with the others." The pilot reiterated, as the other man wouldn't stop. "Bastila sacrificed her life for us and the galaxy, we can't waste it!" He exclaimed, sounding surer than he felt.

"But, I can't…can't leave her…Malak…he'll…_I can't_…she won't…I need her-_not without her_, Carth. Don't make me…not without…" The tormented murmurs trailed off into nothingness, the man just feeling every hurt as he felt a stinging when he blinked his eyes.

"_Snap out of it!_" The older man all but screamed. "There are people counting on us-on you, billions of innocents whose lives all depend on every decision we make. Nothing you can do will make that door open, but you can redeem yourself by finding the Star Forge and taking your vengeance on Malak there!"

"_Malak…_" "Kaleb" trailed with unparalleled odium as he rose to his feet; the pilot was actually scared when he saw the detachment in his eyes, only an unforgiving rage filling the depths.

If Malak would take the only thing that mattered in this galaxy to him, if he could no longer feel her love and have it sustain him, then he would be fueled by an opposite, but equally powerful entity-his hatred for the weakling sith who took her away. He would use this hate to carry on without his heart as they rest of him died along with it, to complete this mission, to find Malak and make him feel absolutely every pain he felt in this exact moment.

_His agony…_

The shell of a man brushed past Carth as he stiffly walked away from the door and the older man followed a bit behind as they made their way to the Ebon Hawk. As they entered the hanger bay and they're eyes saw the readied ship, the young man prepared to enter the craft, for the barrage of questions, the interviews, the revelations, and the sorrows. "Kaleb" had exited the ship when they had arrived here, Revan the one who endured the trials within, but this new hybrid would re-enter this ship, no longer a fool with boundless mirth, his mind focused on one thing-getting to Korriban would bring him that much closer to his goal.

THE END


	15. Severed

Wow…it's been a really long time, hasn't it, guys? Sorry for the wait, but this college thing is NO laughing matter – frankly; I'm just happy that I was able to get this 15th chapter out before leaving. As I posted on my profile; I'm putting this one out on my birthday, for two reasons:

**One**: because it a little present to myself since this is my first and most beloved story

**Two**: being 18 is a super big change, and another drastic change will be found in this chapter. It will be a lot darker, and of course, there will be a whole lot more introspection since Bastila's gone.

I'm not gonna lie to you guys; it's hard writing without my girl and I hit some _major _writing blocks on this one (I thank God that I got through them), but it flowed more and more with time. What I hope most of all, however, is that ya'll still enjoy it. It's not the easiest task to make a story that's focused on a particular relationship interesting, when a key person is now gone, but I'll do my absolute best. You've all been such faithful readers and literally seen me grow in my writing skills and age…It's funny to realize that this fic has been going on for _years_. : )

And, now being a legal adult; (arranges tie while sipping sophisticatedly on coffee) I'm really glad to say that my original plan hasn't changed. No matter what – I want to make this story an entertaining and beautiful romance for all of you: the loyal readers. For it to be _epic_…Something that you'll never encounter again; worthy of all your absolutely wonderful reviews, but mostly something that will surely never disappoint even when it's finally over.

_So_, on that note! Chapter 15, everyone!

_Special thanks to my beta and amazing friend Arsenel -- you're SO the best! Love ya!_

--

_Empty…_

_Fractured…_

_Alone…._

The world around the lone man had drastically been reduced to nothing more than a vacant, dreary gap in the galaxy; a minuscule blimp that another had called a civilization; an abyss where nothing was existent besides the entity of darkness engulfing him and the hollow thud of a heart that claimed continued life to deaf ears. He could not properly justify if he was alive or not. There was no motion; no sensation in what one would call a body. There was no true sense of time, just the anguish it brought: mornings rolled by restlessly and nights were one agonizing moment after another; but the truth, since that was what was so adamantly given in this period of his life, was that he was more of a soulless husk, a façade that belied nothing of the desolation it carried within: it had all been washed away.

And then, in a moment of abrupt clarity, it suddenly had meaning – like a brilliant flash that exposed all in its presence: all that happened, all that was determined valid – all of it boiled down to two things; after all the unresponsiveness and detachment, the man came to the conclusion of what every entity needed in life – what he needed to become and gain…something; he was not picky, he just needed something to cling to that would not fail him, for his first step to consciousness not to be unstable.

_A title…_

They were words, letters grouped together to provide ownership – so very simple…yet, every living being needed one; and because of this, he was lacking.

_Revan…_

A man; a genius; a savior; a Dark Lord; a revolutionary…him?

_No…__**Yes**__…In the past…_and_…__**Now**__…_

_The man_ was Revan. _He _was Revan. _Revan_…was who he was. Revan _was_ who he had been. He was Revan _now_.

_Before. _

_Then. _

_**Now**__…._

It had to make sense; it had to be repeated, restated, and reapplied in every possible way until it finally clicked: deafeningly loud; it was made into an immovable fact. He had not had the proper time and space to realize what was now an actuality. It was forced upon him violently – mockingly, and because of this, his mind took the same violent action, forcing the man to accept reality because it had been what was needed – what was needed for a solution; there was urgency in its acceptance, and that was missing in what he had now: time. And in that time, he discovered verification to the earlier urgency.

_Yes_, he was and is Revan, but by name only; details and technicalities no longer mattered.

A soft, yet audible exhalation was expelled from Revan's mouth from the realization, the first sign of life given for such a momentous step toward reality; and while the abyss around him was still present, there was now a form that it engulfed, a named entity that could be claimed…yet still a husk.

_Kaleb…_

The man; the leader; the rebel; the clown; the lie…He felt, in his fragile mind, but more so from his shattered heart, that there was another label, but it was _far_ too…_**painful**_, for him to recall.

Who had that person been? It all seemed so distant now…Had it been so long since he honored that name? Honored its characteristics so wholly?

_It sure as hell feels like it._

That form, that being had been nothing more than a fabrication – but was that true? It was too dismissive, too absolute; something of that man had to be accurate to him, it all couldn't have been an elaborate lie; the Jedi were not so ruthless that they would eradicate the entirety of his former personality…He could not acknowledge himself being only a falsehood completely true; something had to be real from the shadow that he was -- _anything; _something the two entities shared in common despite their sex.

Revan's heavy eyelids closed jadedly; he would think on that later. There were far too many broken pieces at the moment, and he could not take the cut of them again; _not now_, _not now_.

He tried to close his eyes all the harder as if in effort to blot out the entire situation that had befallen him and normality being what greeted him when they opened; one last time – but of course, it did not work. His eyes opened and the darkness continued to surround him. The man's body was slumped lifelessly against the wall, his form sliding down inches every few instances from gravity's pull.

There was a feeling then, something that Revan could not ignore, against his skin: it was cold. He was able to identify the part of his body that was affected…It was his wrist, there was something strangely icy against his wrist, something he had not felt or had not been able to feel before – his eyes darted opened to classify it; his first mistake, and then and there he wished nothing more than to have his eyes gorged from their sockets.

It was a necklace: **the **necklace.

The pain came fast, swooping down with blinding speed and crushing against his body as the man struggled to breathe; Revan's fingers clutched his chest hard, almost clawing against it as if wanting to rip his heart out: that certainly would feel better than the anguish that seized him now.

_Bastila…_

On mere impulse, Revan tried again – and with all the desire that he had for the contrast, he was given the same result. Their bond was closed. It was her doing; in order to protect _him_, protect something that wasn't even _real_ – that _**never**_ _could_ be real.

_What had she loved during their mission? What had she seen? What made her so ignorant to the fact that he was Revan that she opened her heart to him? What did this "Kaleb" posses that completely obliterated the deeds he had done in his abysmal past? What could she__** love**__?_

It just could not be comprehended; even for her: a woman who made her very ideal to be that of the Jedi. She was the most selfless person he had ever met, thinking it natural to give of herself before another had to, but this…such forgiveness, such compassion had to be inhuman.

It had never occurred to the man; hell, he didn't know it, but still…All of the opposition, all of the hesitation and denial – how understandable when looking from her point of view!

**There was guilt…**

He had forced his love on her, had become frustrated when she denied him, even angry at himself for developing feelings for her in the first place – intense from her doing whatever she did to attract him…but _gods_; how she must have suffered realizing that she did indeed love him also, how many restless nights, how many endless chants of that Jedi mantra. Revan cradled his face in his hands as remorse and shame held a vice grip on his heart: the blame that she no doubt inflicted on herself; he couldn't even think upon what kind of horrors she put herself through to make herself feel adequately despicable – not without feeling a deep wave of nausea in the pit of his stomach.

He was the epitome of the dark side, the personification of everything her Council deemed evil…But what she had fallen in love with all the same.

**D****oubt…Swooping and inescapable… **

_It was a __**lie**__. The__** lot**__ of it._

She couldn't have fallen in love with the person he was now – the man he had been: she had fallen for Kaleb – Kaleb had been the one to break through her guards; Kaleb the one who gained her trust; Kaleb the one to trek the painstaking path to her heart.

But _he_…He wasn't…that man – couldn't be. Not anymore.

**Bitterness**…

What…what would greet him with their reuniting? If he saved her – when he saved her – how would she react? Revan strained his mind to recall a painful memory; one of betrayal and loss: when Bastila had admitted to knowing about him being a lie all along – but he had been too objective then.

He realized that.

The man was far too concerned on himself, on the pain he felt, immediately discarding that she could be hurting as well: that she just might, on the off chance, truly love him. And that was his focus. He tried to remember her actions, her words; he attempted to see if she accepted the harsh fact or not.

She…she had spoken his name – his true one.

That was accurate. He remembered because he had flinched; he remembered because the pain was close to unbearable. Out of all the tortures that he endured in that Sith hell, when she called him that, when Bastila labeled him as Malak's former master; it was made so real. He could deny Malak's claims to him being a Dark Lord, the Council's and even the entire galaxy, if they were against him – they did not matter. But when it was someone he cared about, someone he knew…thought would never lie to him; the pain…The truth, hurt so much more.

She knew – had always known. The look in her eyes said it all.

It was not as comforting a fact as the man hoped. There was a difference in knowing and accepting; did she accept that he was Revan – would she? He did not know, and small currents of fear coursed through him. A man unaffected by the most terrifying things produced in this universe – thriving on their occurrences in his life, but scared senseless from the negative possibility of this.

_**How incessantly illogical**_**.**

_It deserves a__ smile. _

At least, he thought he was smiling; he did feel a slight spasm near the corner of his lips as the middle opened slightly. It would probably be seen as hollow, maybe even a scowl – his face had not quite caught up yet -- but it was a start. The first real fleeting sense of emotion: happiness; there was no surprise that it was a thought of Bastila that had extracted it.

Revan was slightly pleased with himself from this wondrous occurrence, this accomplishment. A human needed to feel; if only to know they were still alive.

The man looked down at the necklace again, recalling how it was tied around his wrist: hurriedly; hastily; regretfully. He closed his eyes to embrace that memory too wanting to judge every one of her reactions in his mind before she ran away from him, was lost to him; maybe it would provide a clue on why she sacrificed himself. Or was it a clue – an excuse? Was he just avoiding what would be painfully obvious to any other sentient being with half a brain?

Bastila had left because of him. And while others consoled that she sped off to her own death because of the galaxy or because of the mission, or even to just save Carth and his lives, along with the rest of the crews'; **Revan** knew better while "Kaleb" wanted to believe. She had run off to escape him: the guilt that he slathered on her without stop, the oppressive words that no doubt broke her heart. Bastila had loved him; he knew that, saw the evident heartbreak and misery in her teary eyes, but couldn't stop.

_**Force**_, why didn't he stop? Even when she conceded to him -- _**Why**_?

A fresh wave of the crushing force that felled him before was thrust upon his chest again, robbing him of air from that single thought – and the unspeakable answer.

_**Because **__**I wanted her to suffer.**_

_She swore she would stay with me: help fight the darkness… _His own consciousness remembered with a broken spirit as his every heartbeat was a pang of torment, _She swore that she would stay – how…how could she; she promised…__**promised**__…. _

His hands suddenly clawed at the item around his wrist, hating the thoughts that it dug up, the memories it used as torture. About to rip the delicate jewelry off violently and fling it across the darkened room while taking satisfaction in hearing it bounce harshly against the metal floor – he stopped, his fingers desisting before completely removing themselves from it.

The necklace that once gave him a sense of peace, a rock to hold onto in their relationship, now smoldered against his naked flesh, burning images of disgust and scorn toward the one he loved. The sickening…_irony _was enough to give any man spiraling depression, or handily kill off a lesser mortal.

Luckily; he was neither.

His fingers deftly continued to untie the article from his wrist, but the precision of his digits belied his true feelings on the object itself; unwrapping it, the man hooked it around his neck, re-tied the strings, and clicked the clasp of it into place. Feeling the centered pearl again weighed heavily against him despite its light mass, but he wore it in the fashion that it's original owner once did despite this: this would be his constant reminder, not given in shame as she did on the Leviathan, but worn in determination that it would be returned. He should have to endure the pain the necklace issued, that being the least of what was thought deserved since he could not feel Bastila's pain through their bond, finding a newfound sense of strength. While not quite the cause that he was looking for that every human needed to continue life; it was a stimulus to keep going, the strongest for the time being.

Closing his eyes, again, Revan was a blank slate; deadened and devoid of any passions. Revealing any more about that recent impetus would be unproductive: he needed focus most of all, and that would only deter him from such. The man would look beyond these harsh moments that fate seemed to deal with replenished zeal, ascend the stage of feeling sorry for himself now that he had some grasp of who and what he was and had been, ignore the excruciating guilt of sending the one person he loved to their imminent downfall, and choose to stay ignorant to the fact that every single grain of knowledge that he once held on his life was a falsehood. While not much of anything at all, progress or otherwise, it was enough for his brain to claim a purpose; one that his head knew to be superlative as a single command echoed throughout every nook and cranny of his being while hatred was its benefactor.

_Find Bastila and __eliminate Malak – __**by any means necessary**__. _

For the time being, the rest of his self-conscience would have to remain lost, the essence of who and what he was an enigma; Revan had nothing to exist for – cared for nothing and no one, save that.

_The rest of the damn pieces could be put together later._

The darkness that once surrounded him began to melt away into walls of uncompromising metal, the first true signs of him being on a ship revealed as the man slowly lifted himself to his feet. A soft grunt managed to escape his mouth as his entire body felt extremely heavy; Revan was quite sure that his rising was not too dissimilar to that of the awakening of the once dead – but then again, was he not supposed to be dead himself?

His limbs were lead and joints stiff as he, awkwardly, moved them back and forward, testing them like a newborn child; his eyes stared straight ahead with grim resolve. The husk had now obtained function, and to carry it out: transformed, once more, into a man.

"_Korriban_."

It was the first word uttered from the mouth of the detached male; the sound gruff and hoarse from an unknown time of neglect, with no given emotion, only purpose: the word itself meant nothing – the same went for the planet. He cared nothing for the rock, of the Sith secrets it held, of the dark power it exuded – the dangers those powers posed; not even the Star Map earned his attention: it was only a mean to his goal.

However, the man also knew too well that it was far easier to admit such while standing here determined in solitude, but as soon as he left the room – as soon as he opened that door; his state of mind would constantly be attacked by words, people, ideals. It was difficult enough, he remembered, not to merely give in to the oppressive force that wished to swallow him whole while he had to tell the entire crew who he really was – under Carth's unrelenting, if not forceful, insistence. Revan had loathed the man's very existence at that moment…

His mind reviewed bits and pieces of the days old discussion, reviewing in his head the responses the crew had given him and where their loyalties now lay, as giving off hard, aloof features sapped him of all his strength; he could not acknowledge their responses also. Finding that all of them had seemed favorable, except for those of a certain Republic pilot, the man exhaled lightly, bearing the load of what he knew to be a hardened expression but it feeling as if it weighed a ridiculous amount: he was to bear this burdensome mask once more, it seemed. If only to serve as a distraction to what he really was….

"You're still holed up in there?" A booming voice suddenly filtered throughout the emptied room and was quickly accompanied by several loud bangs against the door, "Save me the trouble of having to drag your ass out, Revan."

Revan's eyes narrowed at the sound of the muffled, yet audible tone, knowing it to belong to none other than Canderous even though it was still foreign to him to be named as he was; it was not that he cared about who uttered it: he did not hold that amount of power…not like her. Ripping his thoughts away from the woman, he scoffed from the ignorant remark: this isolation was the only thing saving him, yet the crew seemed to think it the leading cause to his spiraling damnation. The silence could understand his pain far better and rebuked against it far less.

The door slid open with a smooth whoosh as Revan's hand rested heavily on the panel, unlocking it as it gave way to the brusque Mandalorian.

"Well, you look like shit." Canderous commented frankly after giving the once confined man a once over, seeing the bags under his jaded eyes and that his skin was far paler than its usually healthy tan.

A shadow of a sardonic smile crept up on his thin lips. "A shame since I've always strove to impress you, Canderous."

Upon hearing his voice for the second time, he muted his shock to internal examination: it was similar; yes, but somehow different…in tenor, specifically, how tense it sounded: every single word composed, yet seeming to simmer with an underlying fury waiting to be beckoned.

"Hmph;" Both men suddenly heard, as their eyes turned to see Jolee walking towards them, "I see that you've held on to those smartass comments of yours."

Revan regarded him with a light cock of his head. "Old habits die hard." His dark smile remained. "Kind of like you."

"Hmph," He repeated in his usual huff, "I've got nothing on you, kid…After all that's happened, though; I wouldn't be against saying you've earned the right to a bit of cynicism every now and then." The old man gave back, his wrinkled brow showing deep lines of disapproval as he looked to the other man. "And this brute – didn't I tell you to leave him be?"

Canderous shot him an aggravated look. "Say what you want, Jedi, but I'm not one for standing around and waiting for any man to stop bawling over some identity crisis. If he's got half the balls Revan did, he'd get over a damn name change, haul ass and kill Malak for challenging him."

"A decent enough summary: except for conveniently forgetting the part where we rescue the girl, but maybe that's just high on my list of priorities." Revan commented back a bit snidely, his face devoid of any strong emotions, "He is right about one thing, though, old man -- I've wasted enough time." Looking past Jolee's now perplexed expression, Revan brushed past Ordo before stopping right before the entrance to the meeting area. "I'll trust that the crew has set a course for Korriban, like I instructed."

"We punched those coordinates in a long time ago." Canderous decided to answer. "That's why I gave you a wake-up call – we're already here. Docked a good while back."

Not even sparing him a glance, Revan nodded. "Great: Jolee, prepare yourself with everything you'll need for Korriban; you and HK will accompany me there." The younger man then finally gauged the expressions on their faces from his request, not feeling any true incentive to explain himself either way. "If that's all; I have a date with a refresher. Report to the dock in thirty."

The Mandalorian, after watching the man walk away, snorted. "He seems fine enough to me, gramps. And maybe it's all coming back to him, because that look in his eyes just now told me all I need to know."

Jolee pointed behind himself. "Then you're about as bright as that flickering light down there. It's obvious that the only reason that he's even walking around right now is because of Bastila: not even the Republic itself is suffering more from her loss than he is, but even that might not be enough to stop him…" Jolee trailed off vaguely, his head shaking, "You can't see it; hell, you probably don't care enough to, but hate is the only thing sustaining him now."

"Good." The Mandalorian answered back firmly as his eyes narrowed. "Let him utilize it to get him what he desires – that's what Revan would do: control it and make it work for him."

"You think that a hate controlled is any less dangerous?" The old Jedi questioned back, not surprised from the younger man's impudence. "It will consume him; it doesn't matter if he's Revan or not." Looking up to Canderous with a rare expression of grim acknowledgement, Jolee closed his eyes tiredly. "Whether he'll face Malak was never the question; what really matters is if he'll retain the reasons why." He opened his eyes after a slight pause, before waving his hand in the air uncaringly. "But standing around and blowing smoke up a person's ass never got anything done quickly – and it sure as hell isn't half as interesting. We'll just have to take the wait and see approach, won't we?"

Canderous scoffed as he watched the unpredictable old man depart, muttering to himself that all Jedi were messed up in the head one way or another while heading in the opposite direction.

--

Listlessly, Revan's dripping hand slid down the control panel, almost as languidly as some of the water droplets gliding down its flat surface; his finger searched for the off button until it was found, the scalding hot water ceasing its spray as the shower head cut off completely. He had not set the temperature to the highest degree in an order to burn himself, nor did he sense it as metaphorical for cleansing himself of what he undeniably was, the evil he had been; no, what he wanted the most out of the inanimate object was a chance at feeling – some stimulus that would awaken his every nerve ending to this world he once again consciously chose to inhabit.

Revan felt oddly disembodied from his own form, as if he were watching himself watch himself try to be what he exactly was…if what he was now could be defined. Not so much like a ghost, or even god-like, but as if he wasn't truly a living being at all; a trick of perception…Yet, here he was: this entity of flesh was there to constantly prove him wrong. He had not felt any pain from the scorching water raining down against his naked and vulnerable skin, but witnessed the effects of it as it reddened fiercely in warning, almost as if enraged at the man for letting it be so badly abused. The reaction was clearly witnessed, but there was nothing to provoke it; his life seemed now to be cause without effect.

Stepping out of the refresher's opening, he then grabbed for a towel and began wiping himself off absently, led by instinct than anything else. It had to be: his mind had maintained as an endless abyss. No true thoughts resided there; no explanations; no recollections – no urgencies. It was so completely blank of anything, that he could actually feel himself trying to think of something to think about; the most immediate problem with that, however, was that his thoughts, when he successfully discovered even one through incomparable concentration, always linked back to one specific person, and no matter how unnerving it was to operate without conscious thought, nothing – _nothing _was a more worse fate than _not_ feeling. Emotions seemed utterly lost on him now, but something new readily took its place, something that could not be described in all of the languages he had learned or stolen because it was the most confusing of all paradoxes: this white, burning hot, black, bitter frozen bottomless thing.

It was not a feeling in any sense of the word – it could not be – it was emotion's complete opposite.

Whenever his martyr of a mind managed to reflect on Bastila Oriane Shan, on the unconditional despair from losing her; there was an abrupt severing of ties to known reality, similar only to being harshly punched in the gut, it knocking out all available air and the victim fading into darkness. In the exact instant, there was no sensation whatsoever as his vision started to black out, and no matter how hard he tried to breathe again – to be _himself _again – no oxygen would take refuge in his lungs. It was more than pain could comprehend and far worse than any suffering. A living being could feelthose, but, eventually, it would pass. This…was a perpetual state of emptiness. Something so unimaginably deep, so very malevolent and overpowering, that even while the man was physically breathing and sustaining his life, every inhalation brought another constricting, writhing grasp of nothingness.

Trapped inside a prison of flesh while being completely disconnected from it…_What discordant glimpse of hell was this? _

Revan avoided the query because his mind, once again, could not handle it. But while he could not grasp the concepts of thought and emotion; the man did have an anchor that was keeping him here, keeping him from casually slitting his wrist just to see if the ultimate sacrifice would be enough for him to regain a reaction.

It was certainly tempting.

Death never had any true claim over him besides what was obvious; when "Kaleb", he had never been frightened from the prospect of dying because he already knew it was inevitable: understandably; he would enjoy what time he was given and when it was done, it was done. As Revan, and gaining access to subtle viewpoints and memories that were strangely foreign and yet irrefutably his own, he again did not fear the concept of dying because after one in the Force died, they once again became one with it. Now, however, as the person he was now, there was a morbid curiosity with the grim entity: while Death still did not unsettle him, it always had the single string of control over when his life would cease to exist – yet now it was powerless.

As if gaining some forbidden and formerly unreachable knowledge, Revan saw how very invincible he was, how if he killed himself; it would be because of his will and not because Death claimed him. He recollected that this was a similar state of mind to when he was the Dark Lord of the Sith, but there was a slight variation: when he was Sith, he would not allow Death to touch him because he demanded it; nothing would stop him from fulfilling what he saw as his destiny. It was not arrogance, nor was it ignorance. The man had fully known that he could die, that it would eventually become a reality, but was so very at ease with his dark power, with relying on it, that he no longer saw Death as a worthy enough adversary in the game of life that they played; it was no longer exciting escaping the tactics of something he had stared in the face so many times before. The man decided to keep that aspect of himself from his newly awakened persona for his current task: to have an ultimate goal and place it so much farther above anything else, that not even Death could stop him…_That_, however, had never been the problem: even as a Dark Lord, he had emotion.

The desire to kill himself, because of this, had begun to cross his mind, the man had counted, eighteen times before the entire process of becoming empty restarted itself again and it was left behind. Each time, before the astringent void took hold, he adamantly reminded himself that if he died:

_Bastila _– his one untainted purpose – would be lost.

The galaxy would be helpless against Malak – the one he _swore _to kill.

He could not be _selfish_.

Systematically, in that order, he let it reverberate throughout his bare vessel, because there was one other thing that the waves of emptiness accepted as an ally: logic. And that logic burned him to his core, the center of what Revan was because it was something that could not be erased no matter who or what he was. This reasoning that filled him gave way to something that was much stronger than any emotion: hate. It was completely logical, despite the power of it and how it loved to erode; such an ingeniously concealed and tightly packaged hatred inside him, yet it exploded; it festered; it seethed.

But what exactly did he focus it on? If it were blind, and had no target, then it would certainly consume him: he relied on logic. What had incurred the wrath of this unfathomable abhorrence? What earned his ire?

He had been too narrow-minded at first; Revan merely thought he hated Malak for taking away what meant most to him, perhaps even a small part of him enraged from his dastardly betrayal. But that was wrong; so very, very wrong. It was far more logical to state that he hated absolutely everything, and in the end that meant nothing at all. His entire being was just filled with a caged fury from what he had seen the galaxy offer. He hated the Jedi for manufacturing what he was and for not providing him with any other choice but what they offered; he hated the Republic for forcing him to be the one to carve the unknown path of free thinking; he hated the Sith for their ostensibly idealistic mandates and them ultimately misleading him; he hated all of the innocents that he had been forced to help because they were complacent with being too pathetic to help themselves, but all too eager to lay their burdens on another; he hated all of the corrupt who he was forced to impede because they, while having the initiative to get what they wanted, were too simple to not fall prey to baser desires in the process.

And because of all of this and their influences; Revan hated who he was the very most: what politics, and ideals, and titles he had embodied throughout his lifetime. Feeling the light weight of the towel slip the grasp of his fingers, his legs were compelled to move as his feet obeyed, their course taking him to the mirror above the room's sink as he stared wordlessly at his steam clouded reflection: distorted; unreal. _When_ had he ever been himself? _When_ had he simply and plainly been a regular man? _When_ was he ever allowed to? _When_ would he ever be given that chance?

_That _was it…This was the _key_. The reason why so much hatred had found residence in him and logic readily allowed it; he had neverbeen given a chance at life – at _living_.

His entire existence was planned out by others, his actions done only to make someone else's life; this galaxy a bit safer. Never, not even once, was the man given the opportunity to be selfless: a Jedi's life was sacrifice. He could not help but understand one of the reasons why he allied himself with the Sith, became its leader: it was a chance at freedom – at selfishness. He could experience emotion, truly use it for the first time in his life without berating himself or relying on some fool Code, even use it to make himself more powerful…but that was lacking as well, and he saw it – which is why, when a Sith, he looked for something better, tried to control and interrupt what had such a firm hold on him: the Jedi; the Republic; the Force itself. It was a foolhardy attempt, but the man had been zealous and overconfident; it never occurred to him that attempting to change the entire galaxy to his favor, and annihilating any entity that chose to get in his way, was too arduous of a task…Especially when he could have done something far easier. "Kaleb" was the personification of that answer, unspeakably and uncontrollably free in every sense of the word.

Revan's hand rose to the glass-like surface of the mirror, using it to wipe off some of the steam, seeing himself clearly because of it. He had never taken the time to stop and think that maybe that was the best gift he had ever received from that Council…That when they wiped his mind, they wiped away their control – the galaxy's control – as well. "Kaleb"…was absolutely everything he wanted in life, a hidden longing inside of the man that, with his normal defenses eradicated, immediately emerged through. He was so very satisfied before this self-awakening, even with the mission he had been ordered to do by the Jedi; "Kaleb" lived for only himself; for his enjoyment and what brought him contentment, amusement, and personal satisfaction.

It was…the most interesting strand of self-interest, and for that he marked it as a goal, something to keep in his new personality. It was not that "Kaleb" was unjustifiably selfish: he willingly did all he could to help others he cared for, but so nonchalant and undeterred with his methods of living that if another did not fit into his plans or tried to change them, he would simply move on, never compromising his happiness if it meant sacrificing what he believed in. His fingers slipped past the hollow of his clavicle, reaching for the smooth orb of the necklace.

_Except with her – only for her; Bastila-_

The unyielding clench constricted his chest suddenly, once again depriving him of air as his hands gripped the sides of the sink roughly, his eyes and brow furrowed tight from an unimaginable sense of nothingness: every attempt at a feeling was suddenly targeted and erased just as capably, the feeling of emptiness resounding in the same key as their severed bond; a flat, sour note. The man was left hunched over and shaking after several agonizingly long seconds, his palms now slipping from the smooth material of the sink from a cold sweat – it was still too soon. His body continued to reject emotion and there was no possible way, he knew of, to reflect on the woman without those banned sensations filling him. He was confident that he would get to that point, but, for now…It was still too fresh, the wound too raw and even he, after all the suffering he had endured, was not ready to face…that; coward or otherwise.

Revan exhaled, slowly regaining his dispassionate disposition, but sensing this moment had helped in some way to discovering who he was and what he truly wished to be in the future now that he was finally given true power in shaping his destiny. He opened his eyes and stood to his full 6'2'' height, staring into the orbs in the mirror, and for the first time, seeing how very burdened they were; how the once vibrant gold was now a bland honey, but then in the same instant, not witnessing any change at all. He was still a master at deception, it seemed; if only to himself.

_Was that not the most important person to deceive in these situations? _

The man bent down to retrieve his fallen towel off the floor before refolding and hanging it again on its rack, knowing that he had spent enough time in this room. He had given Jolee and HK thirty minutes to equip and prepare whatever they needed to for this planet and held himself as no exception to the rule – too many hours had been so readily wasted with his previous inaction. Turning now to the toilet, Revan looked to his clothes while donning his underwear, his mind registering the shades and lengths, but not caring in the least to what was worn as long as it did its job in covering the nakedness of his body. After pulling down a white undershirt over his head, a protective mesh underlay underneath it; he snatched up a slightly thicker and more form fitting grey shirt, it being long-sleeved as it stopped before his wrist. Placing both legs into dark brown pants and unceremoniously pulling them up, the man fastened the two buttons that kept them secure before sitting down on the now bare toilet to take care of his boots. Revan rose when he was finished, heading back to the sink to hurriedly brush his teeth and let the water wash away the residue, his toothbrush clattering softly as he dropped it back in its dispenser and wiped his mouth before heading for the door, the thought of checking his appearance never crossing his mind even once.

The sliding door opened easily with a soft whoosh as his hand touched the panel, and the ship's cold metallic interior greeted him as he walked out; he meet it back with a gritty, if not single-minded stare. The ship almost seemed foreign to him now as he let his feet navigate one of its halls, as if this were the first time he had ever been aboard it…adamantly ignoring the fact that he didn't particularly want it to become too familiar, to let memories overwhelm him with every room he passed. He blinked the notion away, finding it unnecessary; focus was needed most of all right now, and that would not come from random reflections of things best forgotten.

_Korriban is a Sith world, so claiming to be a Jedi could be…problematic – though there's not much I can do to remedy that situation when I carry lightsabers. _Revan began to think, knowing that this last stop in their mission would be a suitable distraction. _ I don't want to have to fight the whole planet just to get one Star Map – it'll take too much effort and time. I'm at a disadvantage though: all I know about its location is that it's in some sort of tomb… _He quickly suppressed the thought of wondering if this vision had survived through the other side of his bond,_ I'm sure no one's going to be running up to help me…Perhaps, if I concentrate hard enough, I can access something from my past to-_

The man's musings desisted as abruptly as his limbs did, his mind not knowing why his entire body had stiffened or why he could not continue forward, but determined to find out. With narrowed eyes from this new pause in his plans, Revan scanned his surroundings finding nothing out of the ordinary from the drab metal, the darkened shadows that clothed it, but felt the worst chill run throughout his body as his gaze met a door; and while it was the same make as all the others on the ship, it was the most different and special of them all.

_That's…Her room… _He managed to piece together despairingly, swallowing hard to cure his increasingly dry throat as he felt his pulse and breathing rapidly accelerate; his right hand's palm crushed against the orb around his neck as he stumbled backwards.

His body instinctively careened to the wall for support as he felt his legs begin to weaken, Revan's other hand wiping his brow as he continued to try and calm himself down, breathing in and out deeply as he willed himself onward – _Keep moving, dammit. _

It would not happen. His body denied his orders to continue walking despite his mind's protests to how ridiculous this whole thing was. It was just a door – something that's only purpose was to open and close, to lead to a new place from another – yet it managed to stop him? A man who was once Lord of the Sith?

_Nonsense: all of it. _He thought to himself intolerantly, wrenching his eyelids open as they both tightened in revolt to remain close: they did not want to see the door; that _damn_ door. _She's gone – __**get over it**__; that __**bastard**__ took her – you'll save her, but for now…S-she's gone. _His mind repeated stubbornly, feeling an incessant burning in his eyes. _I __**can't**__ let it…it __**can't**__ become a…._

"Oh; hey Ka-uh…Revan. Wow…It's going to be hard getting used to that." The man suddenly heard behind him, gasping out audibly before turning around and spotting Mission. "How are you holding…?" Her light blue face twisted up in concern from his visibly disturbed state, "Wait – are you okay?"

Revan nodded stiffly several times before his eyes met the floor as he bent over slightly, his head shaking as he brushed one of his hands over his head before looking back up to her, let out a gentler breath and nodded once more. "N-nothing…I'll live."

"Revan…" The young Twi'lek trailed softly as she walked up to him and reached up to place a hand on his shoulder, feeling him flinch lightly; she briefly wondered if it was on the use of his true name: she didn't like it too much now either, "It's Bastila, right?"

The man's features remained impassive as the only thing that exited his lips was a soft, but noticeable exhalation, his form stiffening slightly as he straightened up a bit.

Mission sighed as she let her hand fall; she knew the answer he refused to voice, knowing that Bastila's room was on the other side of him. "Look; I can't even begin to imagine what you're going through right now – I mean, I'm sure everyone here isn't even sure how you're up and walking after what you've been through…But one thing I do know;" The girl's look became one of unshakeable resolve, "I meant what I said before: no matter what your name is or what anyone thinks you are, I'll stick with you, because the Revan you were in the past; that's not who I'm looking at right now." She frowned. "The person you are, though, wouldn't hold this kind of thing in…He would laugh in the face of danger and make jokes when placed in an impossible situation – but never this. And even if the galaxy does just think I'm a kid and that my opinion is worth anything: I know that Bastila would never want you to change, even if was done to rescue her."

Revan stared at the teen in silence, his mind recalling how much she had meant to him, when he even claimed her as his little sister.

_Another time; another life…_

The man knew that he was right, but hoped, for once, that he wasn't; he still felt a connection with this girl, still knew that he would do most anything for her: that she was still family. She was the first one to claim that she would not judge him after his revelation, rallying the entire crew to think the same; he was more grateful for her words now than she would ever know, and more so than he had the capacity of showing at the moment.

"I'm late." Was the cool words that exited his mouth; he stepped past her and began to walk away in the direction she came from. "We'll resume this later."

Mission, after sighing a second time, looked over her shoulder, watching his form move further and further away as he pressed forward – always pressing forward. The last time she felt this sad had to be when her home was destroyed…or even Griff, but she had someone to assist her through each one; the same person who refused her right now. It just could not be possible for him to get through this without help: _everyone_ needed someone.

_But Revan never needed anyone, did he…And Kaleb is gone… _The Twi'lek thought sadly as she wished with her entire being that Bastila was here for him now – she, if anyone, would be able to get through.

--

_Pleased Acknowledgement: Master; as always, it is wonderful to see you fully functional and intact. _HK-47 automatically greeted Revan as soon as its sensors detected his presence near the loading dock. _Though not a meatbag like the other you've chosen to accompany us; I'm sure that, if accessible, my nerves would be tingling in delight from the prospect of being on Korriban. _

"Good to know." The young man commented in a clipped tone as he attached his lightsabers to his utility belt before looking up to Jolee. "Ready?"

"To get this last Star Map and find that ever elusive Star Forge: what do you think?" The old Jedi answered, cutting his eyes to the droid beside him. "Whether I'm ready to do so with your trigger happy droid, however, is another matter entirely."

_Indignant Response: "Trigger happy droid"? Really, Master; I must disagree with the aged meatbag. Justification: To say that I am "trigger happy" would have to mean that I have actually killed something – recently or otherwise, while the truth remains that I have not put my rifle to good use in quite some time now._

Its owner scoffed. "What about all those Sith guards you killed when we were on the Leviathan?"

_Statement: They were hardly worth my time, Master. I can't truly consider those incompetent meatbags as truly satisfying kills, as I'm sure you did not either. Digression: Though I will admit that killing them as they mindlessly ran wave after wave into my blaster fire was entertaining. _

Jolee glanced back at Revan, his eyes narrowing in disapproval. "If you're looking to just have it shoot everything on sight to carve a path to the map, then it'll be easier and faster for the both of you to let me stay on the ship, kid."

Revan gave the older man a wry smile. "If I wanted to cut a bloody path through every Sith I'll no doubt meet on the planet, I would have just brought a certain Mandalorian in your place; two killers having your back are better than one in that type of situation, correct?" His smile dropped as he watched the other man's staid stare, his face now resembling the elder's. "You're probably the most important resource on this trip of ours, Jolee. I'm fully aware that Korriban has deep roots to the dark side, and considering my recent…awakening; I'll need someone to keep my mind focused, to make sure I don't go too far…Should the event arise, of course." He smiled once more as he let out a chuckle, placing a hand on one of the Jedi's shoulders. "But, I'm still not a "kid", old man, so don't think you'll be babysitting me – I just need you to be your usual geezer self and nag me to death if needed." Revan removed his hand as he turned to his droid. "And, HK; you won't be a problem on this trip, will you? No killing people without my word or otherwise?"

_Shocked Remark: Why, certainly not, Master. Especially if by that "otherwise", you mean anything that requires full use of my assassination skills to kill meddlesome meatbags. But do not worry, Master, by not using the functions I was manufactured for, I will only think of myself as obsolete instead of completely redundant. _It ended off sarcastically. _Statement: I have been programmed, Master, by you, not to act until commanded to do so…No matter how unsatisfying that may be. _

Revan raised the fingers of his hand back to other man in a gesture that said "There you go", while Jolee merely shook his head.

"Not like I have much choice in the matter anyway…" The man scoffed bitterly, "Sometimes I think I made a mistake joining you back on Kashyyyk. Should've just sat my wrinkly backside down and looked at a tree, dammit."

"You know you love it." Revan gave back as he pressed the panel to open the hatch, the exit quickly sliding up into the body of the ship. "I'm that little bit of excitement you need in your life to show you're not dead."

"Hmph; with your track record, I'll wind up that way soon enough." Jolee answered grumpily as he made his way down the descending steps of the Ebon Hawk with the younger man in tow and HK-47 behind him.

_Saddened Declaration: Master, there seems to be no current threats in the vicinity. _HK-47 announced with a mechanical sigh as its glowing orange-red eyes scanned the area. _May I suggest that we move on to remedy this predicament? _

Revan tsked at the droid's comment before coming to a halt beside it. "So this is Korriban…Seems normal enough for the moment." He glanced around the docking bay they had landed in, his head tilting upwards to get a view of the dull grayish-blue sky littered with thin clouds, "No hidden Dark Jedi jumping out of shadows or anything. And, this could just be my arrogance speaking, but I've already taken several breaths and I feel none the darker."

"Well; if I can't save you from the Dark Side, your sarcasm is certainly up for the task." Jolee remarked back as they made their way to the entrance. "Though your ego takes a close second."

The younger man answered with a short "Mm" as he looked back down and resumed walking, his brow furrowing lightly as he noticed a green male Twi'lek walking toward him, the expression on his face showing that he was not simply going to pass by.

"They do keep me warm at night, but for now; I might have spoken too soon: we have company." Revan let him approach until he was a few feet away, raising his hand to show him to stop. "I'll presume that I don't have to ask you to explain yourself."

The alien smiled before nodding. "Greetings, human. I wish to have a word with you, if I may. This concerns the Dark Lord of the Sith."

Revan's eyes narrowed, feeling distrust surge through him at the mention of his previous title; his hand hovered near one of his sabers. "And why do I get the feeling that you're not referring to Malak?"

"Perhaps it is because I speak of the true Dark Lord, and your mind was keen enough to take notice. I expect none less from the infamous Revan." His smile widened as he took a single step forward. "Listen to me and all will be made clear. My name is Ziagrom; I am a…businessman of sorts. I and my partner deal in rare items of extraordinary value and power."

Both of the man's eyebrows lifted in slight surprise. "Huh…Well then, Ziagrom; I'll give you fair warning: this isn't the best time to try to sell me something – especially if you're just another grunt for the Exchange."

"I assure you, neither my partner nor I would lower ourselves to working for that…organization." The Twi'lek remarked tersely, clearly offended from his assumption. "Though, I will not deny that we often do business with them: credits are credits, no matter the source. For example, we have always done business with the owners of the Ebon Hawk: Davik Kang most recently. Ahita Othar was before him; Forii Haxa before her." He listed off. "We were…reluctant, however, to approach you."

"I can't imagine why…" Revan trailed off understatedly.

"You had no ties to the Exchange, which, of course, was a problem." Ziagrom frowned. "And to make it worse, you were a Jedi – not the type we usually do business with; I assure you."

"And I'll assure you that you'll want to get out of my way if this conversation of yours doesn't come to a point soon; I'm in a hurry." The young man stated impatiently, not trusting the alien as he eyed him cautiously. "Exactly how do you know who I am in the first place?

"There were reports of the Ebon Hawk traveling to many different planets: we wanted to know what you were up to. At your last port, I placed a small tracking device on your ship."

"Quite a feat considering that I was on Manaan; those fish-heads didn't catch you on their cameras?"

He nodded. "It was a challenge finding a way to be undetected, but I managed to find a way. Anyway, the tracking device had reported to us that you had been captured by the Leviathan. Once we had that information, we began digging into our sources in the Sith fleet."

"I can't say I'm surprised; millions of Sith to bribe with any amount of creds: you'd get what you'd want eventually."

"Correct; your escapades on the Leviathan caused quite the stir. Of course, Malak tried to suppress the truth about your identity: there were more than a few summary executions."

"It seems my former apprentice is once again using underhanded tactics to cover up his own immeasurable failures…Though it must be hard to deal with, for a second time, not being able to properly kill me." Revan chuckled darkly. "Simply amazing: some things never do change."

"Suffice it to say, my partner and I know what happened aboard the Leviathan…At least, we know enough. You are Darth Revan, and you are going to kill Malak for daring to claim dominion over the Sith."

Revan stared at the alien for a long time with stony eyes, watching the slight movements of the alien tell him that he was unnerved by his gaze before letting out a soft "Heh". "I care nothing for the Sith, Twi'lek. From what I've seen, they've all been weakened by Malak's incompetence, seeing as they all follow him so willingly." His eyes darkened as they narrowed significantly. "No; I will kill Malak because it is long overdue. It will be beyond any man's comprehension of pain and suffering, because he stole the one thing that is precious to me." He saw the fear in the alien's eyes, the complete and utter trepidation as if Malak's fate were his own; it made the corner of his lips curve upward into a satisfied smile. "Such unchecked audacity should not be allowed; don't you agree?"

Ziagrom quickly cleared his throat before figuring out that the man's query wasn't rhetorical. "Of course, you are right. No matter what the motive, however, Malak will be killed, and for that; you need top quality items. My partner and I command a rare and powerful inventory: all of which you can use in your battle with the Sith."

"So it all comes down to you selling me something, and here I was with high hopes and everything." The young man sighed, "I figure you won't just give me these items."

"They're yours…if you have the credits to purchase them, of course." The Twi'lek added with a small smile. "We are a business, after all; we have to make a bit of profit as well." He turned slightly and pointed to the entrance into the facility. "Just go to the cantina here in Dreshdae. There's a Rodian there named Mika Dorin; tell him that Ziagrom sent you to look at the premium items."

"I'll sleep on it. Now," Revan began in a terse manner, "if you're done; I would actually like to get started on what I planned to do."

"Then my work here is done." Ziagrom bowed his head in a reverent nod. "Good day, Revan." He took a few steps forward so that he was beside the man. "And when Malak is beaten, be sure to remember who helped you to victory."

Jolee viewed the alien as he walked off before looking back to Revan. "Well, you don't get those everyday. You be careful dealing with those shady types, kid; I'm sure he has some good items, but people like that always tend to look out for their best interests, even when claiming to be protecting yours."

_Helpful Remark: On your command, Master; I would willingly shoot him in the back, so that he will not become a problem for you in the future. _

Its owner shook his head. "No need; I might not know with his intentions are, but I truly have no desire to care. The Twi'lek knows who I am and that's enough: first, that he could not murder me if he tried, and second; he wishes for me to take care of Malak. Whether for business or otherwise, the "Sith Lord" has become a thorn in his side." He began to walk forward to the security station near the entrance. "Forget about him and let's get moving. The faster we get in, the faster we get out."

Making his way up to the port authority, Revan could not help a soft laugh when he saw what species the authority was. "There are more Twi'lek on this planet then Sith, it seems. Maybe I should consider them the real threat."

The male alien gave an acknowledging smile as he approached. "Ah; I see, I see. Another Jedi come to small Korriban, yes? Good to meet you."

"A Jedi?" The man questioned with an inquisitive twitch of a brow. "Is that what you think I am? You'd be wrong if you do."

The Twi'lek eyed him strangely for a second before shaking his head. "Ah. I assumed you were perhaps a Jedi from the lightsabers you wear. My mistake, but there are many who come to Korriban to join the academy here; some of them are Jedi who have left the Order." He smiled. "I am sure that you will get in the academy for certain. Jedi who left the light side are made very welcome."

"Tell me more about this academy you've mentioned." Revan stated, interested in this new revelation.

"Oh? I thought that the reason why you came here. There is a Sith academy right out of Dreshdae where they train their students and such." He waved his hand before looking to the ship. "But enough of that; it is very nice to see the Ebon Hawk return. I have not seen the ship here in a very long time indeed. Since you're a regular to our colony, I'll only make the fee 25 credits."

"_Right_…" Revan commented in a drawl, "How could I forget those pesky docking fees?" He looked the Twi'lek straight in the eyes, his stare focused as he felt the Force pulse inside of him and amalgamate with his very breath. "There's no need for me to pay the fee."

His eyes glazed over slightly. "I…guess you're right. It won't hurt anything if I just let you through."

"How considerate." The man replied absently as he watched the huge access doors split apart. "I'll be on my way."

The alien nodded. "Sure. Enjoy your stay at Dreshdae."

Revan waved the authority off as he made his first steps into the colony, his mood already soured from how very long it had taken just to get inside. This was not a planet he wanted to be on and even less wished to waste time with; his body language conveyed this as his legs took long strides before his brow furrowed at the sight of a lightsaber carrying man berating a group of three.

"No, that is the wrong answer – _again_!" The man scoffed, "You pathetic hopefuls can't possibly all be this stupid, can you?"

"P-please, Master Shaardan; give us a chance!" A Twi'lek "hopeful" pleaded pathetically. "Give us a chance: we'll do anything to get into the Academy!"

"Hmph. I'm no master…yet…but I rather like the sound of that." Shaardan finished in a satisfied manner, before sighing. "Alright; one more question, though the lot of you are trying my patience." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully before giving a thin smile. "Let's say you become a Sith and I am your commanding officer. I give you an order to spare the life of an enemy. Do you do it?"

Revan, though completely exasperated by this unnecessary spectacle, felt his mind immediately react to the grunt's question, it posing an answer despite his will, as if it had been programmed to answer such without a moment's hesitation.

_Swiftly decline the order and request a severe relegation in front of all he commands, or even better: kill him on the spot if you're looking for a promotion – a true Sith's purpose should always be to advance. _

A female Twi'lek nodded eagerly. "Of course, anything you command of us!"

"Yeah; we would never oppose you." The only human hopeful added quickly.

Revan shook his head at their answers: they were so absurdly wrong. The group of hopefuls obviously had little idea of what a Sith really was – and what they were like, and yet they wanted so badly to be one. _How foolish. And these grunts; have they fallen so far that they now hold open auditions for recruitment? _

"No, no, no!" Shaardan chastised harshly before sighing. "Do you honestly believe that the Sith are in need of such sniveling cowards? Mercy is a weakness. If your commanding officer shows weakness, it is your duty to kill him and show true authority…_true_ power." He balled his hand into a clenched fist. "That is why we Sith are strong."

"T-thank you, Shaardan." The Twi'lek male immediately praised, though it was obvious to see that he was confused. "We, uh…We understand now!"

"_No_; you don't understand – and you probably never will. You wouldn't survive five seconds in the academy: the other students would tear you apart!" He laughed at the thought before his features became stern when he looked to the three. "And while this is entertaining; I can't be bothered by fools. Perhaps, I should…hmm…" The young man trailed off as he looked around, as if inspiration would be given from one of the walls or the ground, before his gaze landed on Revan, "You; Jedi! You're looking to get into the academy, are you not? Of course you are…" He answered for him, "Why else would you be here?"

"Why, the dirt and blowing sand, for one." Revan responded with feigned enthusiasm, "And at the very least; who in their right mind could resist the lure of dozens of short-tempered Sith grunts arguing with each other on whose lightsaber is bigger?"

Shaardan eyed the man warily, his brown eyes giving way to anger before deciding to smile. "Your…candor is bold, Jedi – but on to more important things. These hopefuls here will never survive in the academy. A lesson should be taught here, but I am at a lost at what form is should take."

Jolee scoffed loudly. "Well, if you can't think of anything cruel on your own, you shouldn't really be out here, young man, should you?"

Revan grinned from the old man's remark, but more so from the look on Shaardan's: he was utterly insulted and pissed beyond belief.

"_I wasn't talking to you_!" The grunt snapped viciously, before looking back to his original target. "I was thinking to spare them the effort of being killed by doing it myself. Perhaps I should turn their skin inside out? Or, ooh: Force Lightning? That would be a most impressive display, indeed." He cupped his chin in thought once more as he looked back to the quivering group. "Or perhaps a bit of humiliation is in order? I could easily strip them of their tunics and have them run around the colony. Or…why not make them lose all control of their bodily functions?"

The slightly older man shrugged. "Why ask me? You seem to have a good enough idea of torture without needing a "Jedi's" assistance, if anything."

"Please, Jedi – tell him to let us go! I beg of you!" One of the hopefuls groveled helplessly.

"_Silence_!" Shaardan hissed back curtly before calmly looking back to Revan. "Why not ask you? I'm rather exhausted dealing with hopefuls like these; I can barely think straight as it is. Besides…" He smirked wickedly, "I find it fun. Come now; a decision, please."

"You find this "_fun_"?" Revan asked back edgily, his previous annoyance coming back swiftly, "Wasting your time, not to mention my own, in this fashion? How undeniably pitiable." He insulted openly, seeing right through the grunt. "How is it; I wonder, that you became a student of this academy in the first place? A true Sith would never ask a Jedi, who is considered the enemy, make a choice for him – especially when you should know that their doctrines are focused only on peace and non-conflict. A true Sith would not torture someone without a valid reason, because something must always be gained with every action one makes – not just for personal amusement, as that shows the brain capacity of a child." He took a step toward him, his words composed, but the tone of the ones to follow so efficiently unforgiving that the other man stumbled back slightly. "Let them go and I will allow you to live, or I can kill you to free them. Pray that you will not need my assistance with this decision."

"O-oh?" Shaardan questioned shakily from the man's almost overwhelming presence before composing himself, "How intrepid of you…I don't think I've had someone stand up to me like that in ages!" The grunt chuckled as he turned to the group of hopefuls once more. "Do you see, boys and girls? _That _is the kind of backbone needed if you ever even want a chance of becoming a Sith." He scoffed and banished them away with a hand. "Now get out of my sight. I can promise, if I catch sight of you again that I will not be so…lenient."

Revan watched as the small group of three scattered quickly, their eyes full of fear from the man's threat; he tsked. "You want to bet that none of them learned anything from this?"

Jolee harrumphed. "When's the last time you've seen me take a fool's bet?" The wrinkles on his forehead deepened as he frowned, "You never can truly change a person. Not unless they want to be changed…and even then, it takes a hell of a lot of motivation."

_Query: Does it truly matter if the meatbag gained anything from this, Master? _HK-47 posed curiously. _Statement: Though immature and lacking valid insight to what a Sith is, as you so wonderfully conveyed, Master; his suggestions for punishments were admirable. _

Revan smiled as he turned a corner in the mostly metallic walkway, his companions close behind. "No doubt you would prefer a master like him, then. One who would let you kill whomever you wished just for their individual gratification? You might actually be able to catch up with him, if you hurry."

_Offended Inquiry: And provide my services to someone other than you, Master? I can only hope that was an attempt at a joke. I was personally constructed, by you, to be unsurpassed in my fields of practice: assassination and reconnaissance; to even suggest that one of my caliber be used as a cheap toy for an incompetent meatbag and not you, Master, is insulting. _

"Always nice to know that I'm competent," He responded in a light tone as his eyes scanned the new open area they walked into, "especially when it comes from a droid like you HK."

Revan noticed a Rodian at a desk in the front of this lobby area first, but chose to ignore him when he saw merchandise behind the counter; the alien would probably only want to sell him something. The rest of the rather large area was relatively empty besides a few stragglers minding their own business.

"Not too much going on in here." Jolee voiced the younger man's own thoughts. "If we keep moving we'll find this spectacular academy we've been hearing so much about." The old Jedi scoffed as he looked behind him. "Not to give you the illusion that you have a choice, mind you."

"Of course…" He trailed off as he continued on, not noticing the small group of Sith staring him down as he began to walk past them.

"Look here, my dear friends: we have some newcomers to the colony…" A feminine voice trailed in an amused, if not mocking tone, "Led by a Jedi, no less."

Revan sighed deeply as his steps came to a halt, knowing that just by the woman's words there was bound to be trouble – which also meant that he would be delayed once again.

Turning around to see his 'opposition'— three more young Sith grunts – he couldn't stop a disbelieving snort before looking up to the ceiling unbelievingly in an attempt to talk to the Force itself. "_Are you serious_?"

"I don't know, Lashowe. This one seems to have a few screws loose." A Black man next to a blond haired woman joked back.

Lashowe's dirty look did not relent. "Insane or not, I don't think I've ever seen any of these Jedi and their droid around the colony before; have you?"

Her other male friend gave an aggravated scoff. "I hate Jedi…And these fallen ones are the absolute worse!" He exclaimed, his cultured accent coming out more so because of it. "They always get into the academy, and then they think they're better than the rest of us!"

_Blatant Suggestion: Master, it is obvious that these three are looking for a confrontation with us. Can we not save ourselves time better used on more important matters and simply kill them for once? _

"_Don't tempt me_." Revan growled out, his fingers digging into his fleshy palm as they bawled into fists.

The woman, who was clearly the leader of this tirade, laughed. "Heh, smart-mouthed newcomers, to boot!"

"They look pretty fresh to me, Lashowe." The dark-skinned grunt agreed with a wide grin.

"That's what I thought." She commented with a clearly satisfied smile. "Listen here, stranger…I don't know if you're aware of this or not, but here on Korriban, the Sith do as they please. And _we_ are Sith." She finished proudly, her superior tone close to insufferable. "Quite literally, whether you live or die depends upon our whim. What do you think of that, _hmm_?"

"I "_think_"that's a shitload of responsibility for a couple of mediocre grunts." Revan stated brusquely as he finally unclenched his fists, "But if you want to prove me wrong and try to make those threats an actuality – well; I'd just _love_ to see you try."

Lashowe's eyes narrowed from his impudence, but she only smiled. "How precocious. I'm sure he just tried to make a joke, don't you?"

"Well; I didn't think it funny." One of her lackeys remarked angrily.

"Neither did I…A brave face perhaps, but I'm far more interested in being amused at the moment, I think." The woman witnessed the fixed defiance in the man's golden eyes, a small smirk appearing on her face. "What do you say, Jedi? Amuse us. Make us laugh, and we might consider the prospect of actually allowing you and your companions to live."

Revan stared at her, analyzing her words and the meager hold that she had on the Force, before chuckling; it was not a joyous sound or even amused, but indescribably hollow: like the dry crackle of laughter from a man who was no longer afraid to die.

"_Fool_ _woman_, so massively blind to your looming demise, you cannot see that it is right in front of you?" He questioned fiercely, his dampened Force signature igniting forcefully, yet it only being a fraction.

Lashowe's entire face lighted up like a flare, her anger almost palpable as hissed out, "_What_?"

The Black Sith grunt laughed uproariously before catching his breath. "Well, well; I am impressed. I think someone just stood up to you, Lashowe."

"Shut up, fool!" She snapped, though her eyes never left Revan's face, "Unless you want to be next!"

He scowled at her before unclipping his saber. "Yeah? _Any_ time, _any_ place."

"_Ugh_; how boring." The other grunt commented dryly. "And the way you two are fighting is embarrassing, to say the least – especially since it's all because of some worthless Jedi." He turned down the corridor leading out of the lobby, "I'm heading back to the academy. If you two have any sense, you'll join me."

Lashowe scoffed as she watched the other replace his lightsaber back on his belt. "Fine; we'll all go. But _you_;" She announced snidely, her furrowed eyebrows heightening her glare, "you I'll find later. Trust me on _that_."

Jolee scoffed lightly as the trio walked off. "Good to know that part of you hasn't changed: you're still getting yourself into trouble on every planet we land on."

Revan shrugged his shoulders at the Jedi. "Another old habit…Though I'm afraid I'll tap into some darker ones if we meet anymore of these Sith grunts. If anything, they'll be the sole reason why I return back to the dark side."

"You're not doing too bad for yourself." He assured with something close to praise in his tone.

"Really?" The younger man sounded in slight surprise, "Well, I guess threatening two Sith grunts with a swift death isn't too bad these days…Especially if you consider the planet that we're on."

"There's a difference between the dark side and just being pissed off, kid."

"One makes you have skin problems while the other makes you sound cool?" Revan deducted casually as he once again began moving, not wanting anyone important to their cause to pick up on their conversation.

"It's the level of action that you decide to take." Jolee answered, for once not minding the man's derisive remarks, "While it's true that anger is dangerous on any level if not controlled, those who control their actions even while angry show that they have self-restraint. A path to the dark side isn't something that just appears out of thin air: it's always been there and always will. The trick is deciding if you're gonna take that step or not, and sticking with that decision."

"With my reputation, I think it's clear that I'm not much for "sticking" with anything." Revan stated gravely, before stopping in front of an opening to their right. "Don't you think that it would be unlikely that the Sith would just let anyone in to their coveted academy?" He asked, completely effacing the former topic for this newer one. "Those hopefuls we saw before wouldn't be kissing ass for any reason: they were trying to impress that grunt, gain his favor…but for what?"

_Useful Suggestion: A recommendation perhaps, Master? It is logical to think that one would have to prove themselves to a Sith meatbag that had already been accepted into the academy. _HK-47 inferred to him. _Statement: Finding another one of those hopefuls to know why they so willingly degrade themselves would save time. _

Revan nodded in agreement, once again appreciating the droid's deducing skills. "Good idea; let's see if we can find someone in here." He replied turning into the opening to the right and seeing that it was some sort of office, a space in the back being used to store packages.

_That dock authority told me that Czerka was on this planet: this must be their base of operations. _Eying the office completely, he also spotted a young man speaking with a female Twi'lek to his left and decided to speak with them before leaving in case they were hopefuls; he walked up to the centered counter and was automatically greeted by the Czerka representative.

"Greetings:" The man sighed, "You've heard of that awful business on Edean, yes? Our corporate outpost there has been destroyed by those Wookie savages."

"He means Kashyyyk." Jolee corrected before giving an approving smile. "And while I'm not surprised that their outpost has been destroyed, I will be shocked if there's one Czerka worker left on that planet after the Wookies are through."

The rep shook his head. "You're probably right. This nuisance could put back the use of Wookie labor considerably. We may have to even abandon the planet completely.

"I'm sure Zalbaar will love to hear that." Revan commented absently, before smiling a bit as well as he vowed to remember this fact and relay it to the Wookie.

The man eyed him strangely before forgetting about the odd remark, and shrugging slightly. "Ah well. What can you do?" He gave his full attention, "I'm sorry – was there something you needed?"

"Actually; there is." He answered, discarding his former disposition of not asking the representative any more questions. "What is Czerka doing on a Sith world like Korriban?"

"Oh: we do some mining here and are responsible for local shipping and support of the Sith here on Korriban. Our starport is mostly just freighters and such, but we do get many travelers who come here to learn from the Sith." The man eyed his droid appraisingly. "I must say…Czerka is in desperate need of droids right now, and that's a _mighty _fine looking one you have there."

HK-47's mechanical head sharply swiveled to the human, his reddish-orange 'eyes' glowing bright. _Objection: This unit is not for sale, meatbag. _It growled out menacingly as the man backed away slightly from his counter.

Revan chuckled softly. "Damn – beat me to it."

"Err…yes, of course: I apologize. I meant no disrespect." The rep looked to his owner with a shaky smile. "Heh. Touchy, isn't it?"

"Aren't we all when someone assumes that we're for sale?" He posed before shaking his head when he saw only a quizzical look. "Forget it. You seem to know your 'business partners' well enough; what do you know about their academy?"

"Not much. The Sith are a rather secretive lot, and they don't allow many into their academy. I hear they claim that Korriban was claimed long ago by other Sith, but there's no way to prove if that's true or not. The planet is certainly uninhabited outside of Dreshdae and always have been."

"Hm…Do you know what type they usually allow in the academy?"

The Czerka rep shrugged. "I couldn't really tell you who they favor. All I know is that thousands of prospective come here each year to get picked, though many are considered too weak; I'm afraid." He stated disappointedly, each of these prospects being a potential customer. "I understand there is one main person amongst the Sith who decides which students are worthy…Yuthura Ban, I believe her name is. From what I heard, she's some Twi'lek Sith master or other."

Revan's brow rose from interest, finally feeling as if he accomplished something beneficial to his primary task. "Where can I find this Yuthura Ban?"

"Uh…Other than in the academy itself or in the cantina; I'm sorry, I don't know."

The younger man managed to restrain an aggravated groan, his previous sense of achievement dissipating quickly. "I'll be going."

The representative nodded. "Sure; do come again if you ever need supplies."

"Don't start: it wasn't a complete waste." Jolee commented, noticing the frustrated expression on their leader's face as they departed from the Czerka office. "At least now we know who we need to impress to get in; we just have to find her."

"It's one damn wild goose chase after another – and for what? _Useless_ information that no doubt leads to another place that will once again take me elsewhere." He snapped heatedly, his eyebrows fixed in their rutted state. "I'm so…_sick _of going out of my way to find shit that doesn't matter. We've already invested an hour into this planet, and all I've done is talk to incompetent grunts or been asked to buy crap! Bas-"

The man's words were incomplete as he placed his pointer and index fingers to his temple, his lips whispering something that could not be heard by his companions. Removing the hand, all signs of rage had left his face as fast as it had came, all the muscles of it now slackened, his temperament once again stoic.

"We should, uh…That representative said that Yuthura could be in the cantina – we should head there first."

Jolee sighed heavily, not relieved in the slightest that Revan had recovered so easily. "Kid…Maybe we should take a break; you're still raw right now. And holding it in never makes it better."

_Statement: While I do not often agree with your meatbag companions, Master; I'll make an exception in this case. Explanation: Your body was under extreme duress during your episode, and there were several irregular spikes in your neural patterns, as well. Given the obvious limitations of meatbag physiology, not to mention the toll it will take on your combat skills, a "break" is reasonable. _

"Listen to your droid." The old Jedi added, not minding siding with the usually homicidal machine if it would achieve his goal. "Look – there's a bench right there, let's just all sit down for a second and-"

"_No_." Revan stated in an uncompromising tone, it clearly conveying that he would not be denied. "I'm not wasting any more time. Yuthura Ban could be in that cantina so that is where we are going." He concluded simply, his feet propelling him forward by his last word down the long walkway.

Jolee just watched as the HK-47 followed the man's orders automatically and followed, shaking his head at the sight but knowing that nothing else could be done to change it. _I just hope you know what you're doing, kid. _

The three walked in silence, the trip to the cantina being a brief one as they only had to make one right turn.

Revan scoffed when he saw the small sign hanging outside of the entrance that claimed the cantina was called 'The Drunk Side', though it was an amused one. "These people have a warped sense of humor…Though, between the dark and the light; this side looks the most rewarding."

Walking in, the man stopped and quickly scanned the area, finding no one who fit the description of a female Twi'lek, his eyes narrowing a bit as he continued walking but his composure in check.

_Someone in here would have had to have seen her before or even know where she is now. _Revan thought as he approached two human males near the back, determined to not have this turn out to be another waste of time.

"Greetings, friend." The older of the two greeted amicably with a smile, "Fellow pilot, are you?" He let out a low whistle. "Of the Ebon Hawk, if I'm not mistaken: wouldn't mind taking that one for a spin myself. Sleek ship, that one."

For reasons he could not explain, Revan held off from his prominent question and pursued the topic this man presented. "She's certainly popular. Does everyone know about the Ebon Hawk?"

The younger pilot chuckled. "In a small colony like this, everyone knows everyone else's business."

"It's better than thinking about all the Sith lurking around here, though." The older one conceded.

His partner nodded. "The Hawk's been in and out of here for ages. An out-of-the-way starport is a good place for, uh…privateers." The young man chuckled once again, but it had an obvious nervous tinge. "Not to say that you're one."

Revan studied the man's eyes and saw that he feared him on some level; he gave them both a friendly smile in return not looking to scare them off. "I'm no smuggler, if that's what you mean. Haven't the brains for it, you know."

The older man shrugged nonchalantly. "Wouldn't make a difference to me in any case. Just wish I had a ship like that, myself. Business is steady here with the Sith, but it's a boring haul."

"In case you're forgetting, _partner_," The other added a bit threateningly, "they don't exactly want us talking about there business."

He scoffed and waved the other man off. "Ah; who cares about them? I've seen some of the things that they've been digging up in those ruins in the valley. Pretty creepy, if you ask me."

At the mere mention of the word "ruins", Revan's mind immediately snapped back to the vision he had before landing on the planet. _This could have something to do with the Star Map…. _"What exactly are they digging up?"

"These weird artifacts. Looked like alien stuff." The older man explained, almost eagerly as if he had been waiting to be able to tell someone. "Maybe aliens lived here a long time ago, who knows?"

His partner snorted skeptically. "Don't be stupid. I was talking to one of those Sith and he said there are tombs there dating back to when the Sith were here in ancient times."

"Sith here in ancient times? Sounds he was feeding you a line: Korriban's only been settled for a short time."

"Tch; so says you. He said that the planet was settled a long time ago by the Sith, and they all left…or something. Those tombs are really important to them."

Once again, one of the younger pilot's words was a trigger in Revan's mind. _Tombs…So I was right in assuming that. That leaves no doubt that the Star Map is somewhere near the Sith academy. _

"Tombs, eh?" The older pilot questioned, as if from his own head, "That makes the stuff they send us even creepier. Wish I didn't have to haul it around."

"Yes…It is a bit creepy, isn't it?" Revan related with the man. "Where do they make you take these things, though?"

"We used to haul everything to Taris, and then the Sith would take it off our hands there. Not sure where we'll be brining it to now…."

"Do you have any of these artifacts abroad your ship?"

The younger of the men shook his head. "No. We're not due for another shipment for at least another week."

_Hm…I'm not surprised. _"Maybe you can tell me how a person would get to this excavation site."

"Sure; it's in a valley on the surface, beyond some mountains to the east. No land route…That's why they have us fly in."

"Shows what you know: the academy has a trail through the mountain." The younger partner corrected once again. "That's how all of their students get to the excavation site."

"Well, regardless; the Sith don't let anyone near that valley. Even when we land, they watch us like a Drayberian hawk and want us gone quickly."

"Wow…" Revan trailed thoughtfully, hiding his eagerness with that of being impressed so to not garner suspicion. "So you think no one could sneak into that valley by way of ship?"

"Not a chance." The older one answered certainly. "Heh; you'd be better off sneaking into the academy, if you wanted to get into that valley."

"Hah!" His younger partner laughed, clearly amused by the idea that someone would go through all that trouble and survive it, "Now that'd be a sight to see!"

Revan chuckled as well, if not flatly. "Yes; that would be something else…Would definitely take balls. Either way, thank you for answering my questions: I'll be going now."

The mature pilot nodded. "Sure thing. And hey; good flying, friend."

"While that was truly educational, it only assured what I already suspected: back to finding this Yuthura woman." Revan commented once he and his companions were out of the bar. "She must be at this academy and I think it's damn time we see if it's truly up to the hype."

--

"So now we need to acquire a medallion from one of those Sith grunts to prove our "worth"." Revan announced to the two behind him, his voice surprisingly even considering that they had yet one more task to undergo.

The trip to the academy had been fruitless: all that was there was a sadistic grunt who got his jollies off of public starvation and dehydration, three hopefuls who were dumb enough to believe him, and one grumpy Sith guard. All in all, Revan found yet another Sith bastard, managed to save a Bith by convincing him that the test was a fake, and received the 'valuable' information he now spoke of.

"I'm surprised you're so clear-cut about it." Jolee decided to comment as they re-entered Dreshdae. "Not that I'm complaining, mind you."

"I am angry; I'm frustrated; I'm down right pissed off from all of these _tasks _that we have to do to get into a simple academy – but," The young man immediately snapped himself away from the grasp of the spoken emotions, his tone steady, "none of those will help me find her sooner or put my lightsaber through a certain man's chest any faster." He commented vaguely, not wanting to use specific names in a place like this.

The old Jedi nodded his head, "That's what you call progress. Keep this up and there may be hope for you yet."

Revan scoffed. "A person like me can't depend on hope. Either it takes too long to change anything or it doesn't exist in the first place: neither leaves much incentive for patience or expectation."

The man did not know why his feet led him once again into the colony's cantina, but the rest of his body obeyed: even though the woman he was searching for was not there a medallion carrying hopeful could have been. Scanning the area just as he did the first time he entered, Revan saw nothing out of the ordinary, as if nothing had changed from when he left whatsoever – until he noticed, out of his peripheral vision, a figure all the way in the back of the bar, and from its form it was a female; his eyes narrowed in slight curiosity.

_Query: Is there some reason why you have stopped so suddenly, Master? _HK-47 questioned him, genuinely confused on why his master had halted in the fashion that he did.

"That woman…" He trailed in response as his gaze never left her, his legs now propelling his body in her direction.

"You've set your sights on another woman already – and a Twi'lek at that?" Jolee asked back grouchily, "So much for faithfulness amongst the young."

Ignoring the older Jedi completely, Revan approached the one who earned his attention, something about this woman making him feel…compelled to talk to her. She was a Twi'lek – like the one he was searching for – but that in no way meant that she was _her_: there were plenty of other female Twi'leks here. But…There was something different about this one; not only her dampened signature in the Force, but the blood red markings that marred the pale purple skin of her face, an electric version of the same color being found in her eyes when he saw her glance at him uninterestedly.

The alien exhaled in a way that embodied her intolerance for his interruption perfectly. "Is there something you need, Jedi?" Her voice was enough to tell any sane man that she was indeed a woman, refined and smooth as wine, yet sharp as the end of a poised vibroblade while making her point. "Make it good, for I have little patience."

Her words made the man smile lightly: whether it was because she was so straightforward or her coldness reminded him of a certain someone was something he did not delve into. "Believe me; I can tell, and what a shame it would be if such a tragedy would transpire."

The woman scoffed softly while returning to her drink. "I can already tell that you think very highly of yourself." She took a gracious sip before looking to him once more. "And that you are rude. What is your name, human?"

His smile took on an apologetic quality. "You're right; I've abandoned my manners. My name is Kaleb: forgive me if I offended you for not offering it beforehand. I guess I was so startled by the fact that you knew what I was that it slipped my mind."

"Surely you can't believe that you are the first Jedi to come here? You are far from the others who were willing to abandon that decrepit order of yours."

"Would it surprise you if I admitted that I am not surprised? Being told that you are doing the 'right' thing without proper explanation year after tiresome year…Needless to say, one might not mind getting his hands dirtied if it would gain him some proper answers." Revan's smile became a bit more defined when he noticed the slight glimmer of being impressed in her orbs, before they swiftly dulled again. "But before, you said you had little patience. For my own sake; I should no doubt make this quick: are you the infamous Yuthura Ban?" He phrased the question in such a way that it would show that he could not only feel, but respected her power, maybe even feared – just in case she was.

"I am." She answered back easily, no hint of hesitation in her voice. "Obviously you have been told of me. Is it your desire, then, to train at the academy? Do you wish to become a Sith, human?"

_Direct and commanding…She's successfully leading this conversation. Characteristics of a Sith…or a proper woman…In the very least; I have finally found her. _"I am nowhere near fool enough to even consider wasting your time – that is _exactly _why I am here." He answered with clear and firm conviction. "Let me join you."

A discreet smile on her dark violet lips told him that she had him all 'figured' out. "_Ahhh_; so you are just another hopeful after all." Her expression dropped as her eyes scanned the taller man, her brows dipping down, "Or are you? There is something odd about you that I am just not able to place…"

_Heh; you wouldn't be the first whose had trouble classifying me. _He thought, amused but also pleased from her valid opinion.

"Obviously," She continued, "you are a Jedi. One who is very strong in the Force, it seems." The most emotion he had seen appeared on her face: intrigue. "So were you part of the order for very long? Did they properly train you?"

The man relied on the truth as he effortlessly replied, "I have forgotten a great deal of my training. I will let you be the judge to whether or not you think it a good thing."

"What an absolutely odd thing to say…" Yuthura trailed off, the perfect mixture of perplexed curiosity and subdued wonder, "and even stranger; I do not sense any deception within you."

"Don't insult me, Ms. Ban; what exactly would I gain from deceiving one such as you? You, as I am confident you know, are my key into the academy: I would at least want you to think that I had already done this process before."

Again, the Twi'lek's eyebrows furrowed from his strange remark; the woman had seen confidence with previous cases, but what was before her was…unsettling at best – as if he knew nothing else, but success. "You are a curious puzzle, human: albeit a puzzle with great power."

"How very nice of you to notice." Revan stated complacently, the grin as much in his voice as on his lips: power was only a means to an end and could not be relied on fully – but it never hurt to look self-assured. "Not to mention fortunate for me."

"Indeed…With that kind of power, there is no doubt that you could become a great Sith. Perhaps…" She paused thoughtfully, studying his golden eyes once more, "if I let you, that is. Does that interest you, Jedi?"

"Greatly; as I said before, I would never presume to waste your time." He smiled; an absolutely deceptive smile that left little to interpretation. "If I am lucky, perhaps I'll even learn something useful this time around."

"Hmm. Yet another strange response from your lips." The woman commented, shaking her head slightly. "Is your mind maladjusted in some way?"

She watched the most interesting spectacle yet from him: the slightest twist in his newly formed grin as an absolutely devious look entered his now darkened pupils. "Perceptive, are we …You're certainly not far from the truth."

"I have a feeling that you will make for a most interesting pupil, human." The Twi'lek finally gave in response after a brief second of trying to decipher his peculiar answer. "I will take you to the academy and we shall see if you are truly ready to join the ranks of the Sith." Her electric purple eyes rapidly flicked past Revan's face and to the two behind him. "I have only one other question. These…companions of yours? They will not be coming with you, I presume?"

There was no hesitation as he didn't even look behind himself, "Those two? The droid was designed for my protection and the man is a family slave; old and feeble, but loyal. Something I'm sure you understand: the younger ones tend to rebel."

"My hearing's not so good." Jolee suddenly uttered loudly as if to prove his statement. "I'm just pleased my nice, young master doesn't beat me as much as he once used to because of it; yes sir."

"There is something…odd about this servant of yours…" Yuthura remarked from his words.

"An addle mind from his age – not so much that he cannot perform simple yet necessary tasks, however." Revan countered smoothly.

"No matter. As long as you make sure that they do not disturb your training or cause trouble; you are responsible for them. Now…" She looked up to him expectantly, "Are you ready to go to the academy?"

"Of course."

"Then let us leave. The Master of the academy awaits you."

With a firm nod; Revan allowed the woman to walk ahead of him and lead the way, finally on a set path that would lead him to his goal; his destiny – to what was his by right.

_I'm coming for you…Wait for me – be strong. _

--

"Greetings, prospective students; I bid you all welcome." Uthar Wynn; an ashen skinned man with intricate black tattoos adorned on his face, greeted the small circle of accepted hopefuls in a barren stone chamber before his pale yellow eyes halted on Revan. "It seems we have a late entry…" The man was not surprised to see how calm he looked while being so new as many put on an act, but the look in his golden eyes was all but cold and calculating as he evaluated his surroundings. "Who do you bring before me, Yuthura?" He questioned, his eyes never looking away, but one of his brows rising in interest, "A young human, bristling with the Force?"

The Twi'lek answered him handily, not missing a beat, "A human by the name of Kaleb; he has no doubt had some training, it seems, Master Uthar. Very promising; I think."

"I met this one in the colony…" A feminine voice trailed off spitefully, before Revan matched it to the brusque female he had…met before: Lashowe; he easily contoured his face to be that of a glare from her words, not feeling the emotion but knowing that it would seem 'Sith-like' to them if he did, "Unworthy, if you ask me."

"That, I'll judge for myself; thank you." Uthar stated, his voice impressively controlled as he effectively conveyed his irritation despite his cool composure; his insipid eyes continued to stay on Revan. "Tell me, human…What exactly do you know of the ways of the Sith? What preconceptions has your mind been polluted with?"

_What I know of the Sith, hm? _The young man thought, his first instinct to say that he knew far more them him, but seeing as his 'Master' might not approve, and that he could be considered as a decent opponent; he respected him enough to hold his tongue. _Alright; I'll bite. _

"Oh, the usual: things that I'm sure other Jedi have told you before. All of the lectures and reprimands on how those who follow the dark side have no control; how they let their passions rule them into reckless action."

"Is that so? The Jedi are quick to equate the light with goodness and strength, but the dark side with weakness and evil." Uthar explained, his eyes finally roving over to the others in the circle, as if to include them in this conversation as well. "That is their tradition; and like all traditions, it is one that cannot be easily broken: a crutch that they cling to for comfort. We, however, do not treat the Force as a burden; we treat it as a gift, a thing to be celebrated. We use it to acquire power over others…And why should we not? Because it was claimed taboo? Because it was strictly forbidden? Because the Jedi say we should not?" He questioned, his detached yellow eyes once again making a target of Revan as if requesting an answer from him, "We are as the Force is meant to be. The Jedi, no doubt, hid that from you…Preaching how the dark side is too quick, too easy – all so that they need never challenge the passions that lie within them."

Revan resisted the urge to chuckle, forcing himself to do so internally. _Well, at least he got something right. _

The master continue to direct his words to him, "Joining with us means realizing your true potential. It means not stifling yourself solely for the sake of hide-bound shamans and their antiquated notion of order. _Be_ what you were meant to _be_." He emphasized lightly; Revan stared into his cold orbs brazenly, unfazed by what all the others clearly feared, before Uthar turned to another. "What say you, Lashowe? Are you ready to learn the secrets of the dark side? _Dare_ you?"

The woman smiled confidently from being acknowledged; the gleam in her eye told volumes of her commitment to become a Sith, "I _dare_, Master Uthar! And unlike some naïve and fickle Jedi; I am more than ready!"

Once more, Revan had to stop himself from outwardly showing his amusement: if he truly gave a damn, he would easily suspect that Lashowe held a poorly concealed attraction to him, expose it, and use it to be her downfall; again, _if _he gave a damn.

"Brash and fiery, as expected." Commented a pleased Uthar from her response, "Turn that passion to your advantage, child." He then turned to the man beside her. "What of you, Mekel? Are you ready?"

Revan immediately recognized him as the man who had starved the men in the front of the academy before, his eyes narrowing from his predictable reply.

"I _am_, Master. _More than ready_."

"Hmm…I sense much anger within you, young one. That is good. That will provide you will power." Once more, Uthar Wynn faced the next person in the circle. "And Shaardan…What of you?"

"I am always ready!" The man exclaimed while balling his fist to prove his words.

Revan was not surprised when he saw their Master's face solemn considerable from his otherwise pleased expressions; he agreed: Shaardan was a twit.

"I see…You best gather your wits for the trial ahead, boy, or you will not last." Finally, Uthar faced the last of the new hopefuls, once again getting the strangest feeling that all was not what is seemed when looking upon his face. "And you, young human…Kaleb – does this interest you? Are you ready to learn more about which I speak?"

"Absolutely. I will assume that your time spent on others is as crucial and valuable as my own – if not greater." The young man answered confidently, giving the impression that he respected the older man. "But before I get ahead of myself; I ask one question of you, Master: do you believe that power without consideration of morality is a weakness?"

As expected, all three of the other hopefuls looked at Revan as if he were certifiable for even thinking to question their Master, but each one's expression turned to shock when they heard the area fill with Uthar Wynn's laughter.

"How very audacious! You are certainly brave to argue with my words, young one. I have met few students who would speak so openly to me." The Sith master complimented, vaguely impressed by the man's fortitude. "Ask yourself first what this "_morality_"is? How is it created? Who does it benefit? Where do your notions of 'good' and 'evil' come from? You may come to the realization that morality is but an obstacle to overcome…or not. The discovery is yours to make; should you be ready, of course."

Revan could not deny that he was fairly impressed from the man's answer; not at all like the other 'Sith' grunts he had met who would basely argue that mortality was only an opening for weakness; Uthar not only gave limited insight into his point of view, but left it open-ended as well. Only a fool answered a question so theoretically profound to the human psyche absolutely…Therefore; he was not a fool in his eyes.

"I am grateful that you answered my question, Master."

Uthar only nodded before addressing them as a whole once again. "Now then; you recruits have shown a degree of facility with the Force…You all have the potential to become true Sith. Only one of you, however, will succeed. That person will then be admitted to the academy as a full Sith, while all others must wait until next year to try again…that is; if you survive." He directed an equally pale hand in Yuthura Ban's direction. "My pupil, Yuthura, shall be your teacher and master while you attempt to prove yourselves. Heed her words."

The Twi'lek followed his words with a few of her own as a way to show her authority to them, "As Master Uthar said, none of you are true Sith – _yet_. For that to occur; one of you must do enough actions of worth…gain enough prestige…to be selected." She witnessed their expectant and curious faces, before speaking again, "What is an act of worth? It is something you must learn for yourself. Do not so hastily forget that you are all competitors here…Fight for your destiny, or go home."

Uthar's thin lips formed a smile from his apprentice's words. "I offer you this: to gain a lead over your competitors, be the first to learn the Code of the Sith and tell it to me for a reward." The man bowed deeply to them all before standing tall once more; the gesture was not one of reverence, but a symbol to show he recognized that they were all willing to give their lives for this. "The rest is up to you to discover. Welcome to the dark side, my children…Your chance of true greatness lies here."

--

So, there it is! I hope you all enjoyed it! Especially since there was such an EXTREMELY long wait -- wouldn't want to disappoint.

But you know what? I'm gonna admit it: I will surely miss the name "Kaleb" in this fic (a momento of silence, if you please) -- I mean, you spend 14 chapters trying to get everyone to like a character and call him by that name and not his real one, and then they fall in love with him only to have his named changed in the end! Let's just say I did a little mourning, but the personality is always going to be there, so I got over it. ;D

Until next time, everybody!


	16. Submission

Hello there boys and gals!

Exactly at the hour of my birthday (which is awesome cause my last chappie was released on my b-day), I am writing this lil intro to all of you! I could have waited to release this chapter in nine more days, but 19 isn't as special to me as 18 is -- it's one of those icky in-between stages; we all want to get to 21! lol

Any way, I'll keep this relatively short; first -- THANK YOU SO MUCH! I love all of you who continue to keep up with this story and review despite the long and (from what I hear) unbearable waits. ;D Trust me, I try to make my chapters better and better with time and definitely want them to be mind-blowing as time passes: I hope all of you agree!

My other thing to share is that I truly do appreciate all of the support while I'm doing the whole no Bastila thing -- I'm kinda like on withdraw, it still gets hard to write sometimes, and blocks are inevitable -- but all of you are SO supportive; thanks.

With this 16th installment, I have to say: I LOVE Yuthura: not in the romantic, Revan's gonna hook-up with her kind of way (God forbid) but the, she's an awesome chick, kinda way. Her speech and demeanor are just inspiring for an NPC. I do have to admit, though; I can't stand it when she's displayed as this one-dimensional woman who's only mission in life is to get into Revan's pants, so I hope you're not expecting that, but I really had fun with their conversations -- it's one thing that got me through not having our girl.

As for Revan personally, I really want you all to _feel _him; while I think Bastila's torture sessions have been adequately depicted (and don't worry, you won't be disappointed on her part), I never got the sense of torture on our Revan's side -- just that he maybe cried/got pissed and then continued on his adventure like nothing significant happened. So, that's another thing I hope you can all appreciate in this chapter and beyond: our hero is hurting; broken.

All righty! That's all on my end -- please enjoy and review: they're a joy to read!

----------

Revan gave an approving nod before the soft groans of an older mattress filled the partially enclosed space of his assigned room. "I have to hand it to them: this is unexpected. New threads," He showcased, tugging slightly on the 'Dark Jedi' robe he was given, "nice, comfy bed, spacious desk, a bench in the corner, _plenty_ of atmosphere…" The man shook his head in disbelief before pointing behind himself, "And is that a vase? Touché, evil overlords of the galaxy; touché."

"I'll take that as a sign that you've cooled down for now." Jolee commented imperturbably, as he sat down as well. "Or maybe not: with the condition you're in, who knows what we're bound to get while we're stuck here?" The old man scoffed when he saw the shadow of an intrigued smile. "Forget it, kid: I have no intention of figuring out what's going on in that head of yours."

"Then I'd wish you'd reconsider; one of us should give the effort." He answered, his tone far more burdened than it had been a few moments ago as his eyes slowly began to close; an action he had come to adopt when thinking. "If I have "cooled down", it's only because of the fact that, after constant interference, we've finally achieved something notable. While I may not know the exact location, just knowing that tomb excavations have being going on here is a definite step in the right direction."

_**Inquiry**__: Then why, Master, must we wait if you are so certain? _HK-47 spoke up impatiently. _The Sith meatbag that you must impress has given us a straightforward means of attack: being the first to know their code will provide you with a significant head start. __**Observation**__: Though I must admit, such a task hardly seems satisfying; perhaps, instead, we can start by slaughtering all the inhabitants in this building, Master. Wouldn't that be more impressive?_

Revan chuckled, once again impressed with the droid's ability to read him. "Though I am unable to remember, you constantly prove that I built you well, HK, and even more remarkable; I see I have based your personality off of my own…if not less apprehensive on morality. Either way, you're absolutely right: I'm currently stalling."

"Don't tell me you're getting cold feet? Not after all the hell you've put us through to get here as fast as we did." Jolee challenged, also curious to why the younger man did not spring into action as he did before.

"Sorry to disappoint, geezer, but you should know by now that everything I do is for a reason; though it certainly kills me inside: I can't seem too edgy in this place, and I will not allow myself uncontrolled impatience…lest I bring suspicion." He rationalized calmly, pausing for a second as he once again checked for noticeable Force signatures; the only thing gathered a faint scream, of what seemed to be pain, off in the distance. "I don't fully know the others intentions, but I do know that Lashowe girl has it out for me; if she sees that I'm achieving even one task too easily, or even worse, too desperately, it'll give her impetus to want to work even harder to best me…Maybe even a desire to find out why I'm doing this is the first place, discover a weakness – both are additional challenges I don't need." The man frowned before opening his eyes. "Only strength is properly acknowledged here. My best plan of action, for going undetected, is to appear weak-minded and play the harmless newcomer who doesn't stand a chance…."

"Well, I'll be damned…" The old Jedi trailed with provisional astonishment, "Either I'm finally going senile, or you're actually taking this mission of yours seriously for once." Rising to his feet, he shook his head while heading toward the end of the room, muttering, "Force help the man who made _you_ this solemn, kid."

Experiencing what he felt to be a genuine, yet modest, smile, Revan rose as well. "He'll need all the help he can get. HK;" He suddenly looked to the ready droid, "I have a special task for you here, one that I'm quite sure you'll like."

_**Divergence**__: Not that I would ever consider thinking your reasoning skills flawed, Master, but I must admit I doubt to see how anything other than being by your side, when possible violence could ensue at any given moment, likable. _

"Now wait a second; hear me out before you disagree. I'm assigning you the job of guarding this room while Jolee and I are gone: I've been fortunate enough to get the last room in this hallway, but that won't be enough for prying eyes; I can assure you, one of my 'competitors' will attempt to go through my belongings to learn more about me. Your job, HK, is to give them at _least_ one…persuasive warning if they attempt to do so – and here's the fun part – if their curiosity cannot be quelled or they ignore and try to get past you, damage them enough until they soon think otherwise."

_**Thrilled Query**__: You are giving me permission to kill these intruders, Master? _

"Well, no: you can't kill them outright," The discontent in the droid was close to human-like, until Revan smiled sympathetically, "but I won't reprimand you if they bring their own deaths upon themselves."

_**Pleased Statement**__: Though it saddens me that I cannot end the miserable existence of any foolish meatbag right away, this arrangement, for the moment, is satisfactory, Master – especially if I have no restriction other than killing them on sight. __**Observation**__: I must say that I like this side of you, Master; you are becoming more and more like the master I knew before._

"Hm…Then I'll leave you to it." Revan commented in finality before gesturing to Jolee to follow him as he had waited long enough; walking in a silence that, appeared, would stay unbroken, he looked over his shoulder. "Huh. No nagging from that display? I'm surprised, old man: you're getting soft on me."

The other man's brows furrowed from irritation, as his brown eyes clearly conveyed the imminent sarcasm that was ahead. "What; do you want me to make a dinging sound every time you do something right or wrong?"

"That would be entertaining, but probably too much to hope for…I think we both know that you just being a bitter, old fossil is a full-time job." He supplied back, truly appreciating what his companion was doing, keeping him grounded despite what would seem like harsh feedback and his detached form of gratitude.

_My own unique batch of tough love… _

"Ah, Kaleb: there you are…" A strong, feminine voice called out, "My favorite prospect for the year."

Abandoning the small, yet evident throb in his chest from the last word of his thought, Revan looked up to see his Twi'lek instructor, smiling at him and could not successfully conceal his surprise – the biggest reason being that she was so close to his room.

_She must have just recently come after showing the others their rooms; otherwise, I would have sensed her. _

"Yuthura…" He trailed with an inquisitive stare, before catching himself and smoothly transitioning into a small bow of respect, "Mistress Yuthura; I am a bit shocked: I did not think I would see you so soon." _No use lying about it now; she's no doubt seen it on my face._

The woman smiled, the very feature dripping with the poisons of deceit and power. "A rather…convenient display of respect, but you should know it is not required; in my presence, at least. Formality wastes time, in my opinion, and there is much to discuss."

Bowing only his head this time in what could also be taken as a reverent nod, Revan knew appearing obedient would still be the best course of action, even if she deemed it unnecessary; he needed her to think she held the control. "I would hope, then, that you have not forgotten my words in the cantina so hastily: my only objective, when conversing with you, to never waste your time." Seeing that she found this acceptable, he continued. "I'll admit you shock me yet again with your words: _I_ am your favorite prospect?"

"_Absolutely_; by my estimation, you are far more likely to achieve the prestige necessary to join the Sith than any of the others." She answered positively, with not even the slightest hesitation. "As a matter of fact, I am so certain of it that I'm willing to offer you an opportunity of the once-in-a-lifetime variety." Her electric violet eyes sparked with the mystery of what she had to offer, while her tone adequately equipped her statement with the confidence needed to make it intriguing. "Would you like to hear it?"

Studying her expression briefly, the man's eyes narrowed only slightly: she was testing him. "Why; you tempt with illusion – you and I both know I have no choice in this matter."

"No; not really…Though I will admit that I am impressed with your perception, even when not in your favor." Smile increasing only a fraction, one of her brows rose, "But you need not worry…What I have in mind will benefit us both, you can be sure of that."

"This is why I listen."

"Good. As I said, you are no doubt going to be the one whom Uthar chooses to become a Sith – with my help, of course. Once that moment arrives, he will take you into the Valley of the Dark Lords to the tomb of Naga Sadow to administer the final test."

"So there's a final test, even after gaining the right amount of prestige…" Revan trailed off thoughtfully, knowing that there had to be something to this effect left to conquer; it was never as simple as it seemed.

"There is, but more importantly, during it, you and I will be alone with him. The perfect time to, shall we say, arrange for a change in the academy's leadership?"

Disregarding her ambitious desires for the moment, he sought his own answers. "Interesting…But what is so special about this particular tomb? It can't be the only one, so what makes it so ideal for the final test?"

"An understandable query; the tomb is an ancient ruin on the surface that was visited years ago by Darth Revan and Darth Malak. They discovered a Star Map there of great importance."

His eyes widened from the very mention of his goal, though to a presentable state so she would think him astonished by the fact that he would be in such a 'respected' place; the man found the wheels in his head spinning with possible ideas on how to gain the most prestige in the shortest amount of time.

"You don't say?" Jolee then questioned, noticing that the other was taking too long to say something back. "Well, the master loves tombs, don't you, master?"

"What…Oh yes; I've always found them fascinating." Revan quickly explained, recovering from the small lapse of comprehension.

Yuthura's brow rose in curiosity. "An unusual thing to appreciate, and no less morbid…It is of no consequence, however. Reaching that map, as they did, is part of the final test. At any rate, it is not the tomb that is important; that Uthar will be alone is what really matters."

It was regrettable, but he knew he couldn't ask any more questions on Sadow's tomb without appearing suspicious, not after she had changed the subject so seamlessly. What was needed now was another show of how weak he was; more than anything, he needed her to think there was some chance that she could subdue him.

Feigned uncertainty affected his voice. "Be reasonable…You're asking me to _kill _Master Uthar?"

Her grimace and now displeased look assured him that his charade had worked.

"Is that such a daunting prospect? It is not as if I am asking you to perform the task alone, or as if you will get nothing out of it. There is no way that Master Uthar can prevail against us both: that's all there is to it; it is a very simple matter."

Revan's smile was slightly sardonic. "Pupil against master then…How nostalgic…"

A probing glance. "Is it? Did you betray your master back when you were a Jedi? Is that what paved your road here?" Receiving only a sinister, though mischievous look and an uncaring flick of his hand, the Twi'lek knew she would not get a verbal answer. "Well, such is a tradition of the Sith; it is central to our beliefs. It is my responsibility to replace my master when I am strong enough."

_Now, for a dash of distrust…. _

"I have to ask; my part in your plan seems incredibly thought out, but what about you? What is your role?"

"My "_role_"," She repeated with noticeable vexation, "is to help you gain enough prestige…While also slowing down the progress of the other hopefuls. I want you in that tomb when the time is right." Almost as if it had never left, her face once again became calm and calculating as if understanding his indecision. "We destroy Master Uthar together and I take his place…and you take your place at my side. I'm sure you must see how beautiful this plan is in its sheer simplicity."

_And only a sliver of possible rebellion…._

"It is quite straightforward, and everything seems to be in order and adequately manipulated, but…What's to stop you from seeing me as a dangerous variable in your tightly bound equation? More importantly, what will stop me from telling Uthar to gain even more prestige?" The man questioned candidly, choosing to now reveal a keener mind, "A character of your standing should know that loyalty in this place is fleeting – why trust me?"

"I don't: there is no one in this galaxy that I trust, and you are no exception; yet, I see promise in you…But you're right; there's no doubt you could easily sabotage my plans. Even the hint of betrayal from his pupil and Uthar would move to eliminate me – _but_, this is a very good opportunity, one that you would be foolish to pass up…The chance to be able to start your Sith career as the right hand of the head of this academy: me. I can assure you, Uthar will not offer you that." She then eyed him quizzically; warily, as if spotting the kernel of treachery within his eyes. "Surely you don't believe that Uthar wouldn't be aware of this? He would quickly figure out what you have to gain by betraying him…and would never believe someone would pass that up." The Twi'lek broke her intense gaze down to a far more dismissive one. "Tell Master Uthar what you wish. Were I you, I would first think of what the consequences of such an action might be."

Staring at the female alien for a long time with a completely dispassionate face, a simple smile broke through. "Very well: I willingly submit to your plans."

Again, her entire disposition changed drastically. "I'm so glad you see it my way."

Revan merely continued smiling, not being able to help feeling somewhat in awe at the strict control the woman had on her emotions; at one point in time she would restrain even one from showing, and at another, would allow it to only brush against her face to confuse the viewer on its validity. And then, there were moments like now, where she put the entirety of one emotion to its full effect on the viewer: her body language did not falter for a second while her tone became lithely sensual, voice deeper and lower to assure any male that she was indeed a woman – knowing very well what she had at her disposal and not seeming to have any indecision on using it.

_Dangerous;_ Revan concluded without a second thought, _if only to a man who can feel. _

He was inconceivably impervious: no matter her efforts, they would all be futile.

"It would be unwise not to." He finally replied back, giving his smile the added persuasion of someone she could use to further her own desires. "Your plan will take me far farther than mine could and opportunity this sweet…" His eyes reflected the imaginary workings of a made up thought process as his looked away, before reeling his gaze back, "must be snatched…and then savored."

She was so utterly outmatched, this lowly Sith who stood before he that was once Darth Revan, that the man almost found it pitiable. It was not entirely her fault that she was being subdued without even realizing it: the only deciding factor of his victory being that his batch of hell had been simply more insufferable then her own and he had learned more tricks then her from it.

Revan did not look to her lips, but to her eyes to the see the satisfied smile of what she thought a battle won, so completely oblivious, was she, of his war.

"Very well then: I will begin to make preparations for your final test. Your only worry now is to get there…_Don't_ disappoint me."

"Never; I only ask that you realize my true potential toward helping us both meet our goals." He requested simply, deciding to leave her with another glimpse of the aptitude he really had; she was worthy of that, at least, and he had no need for disloyalty. "Even as a tool, without the proper care from the owner; I will eventually become useless. Make sure to treat me accordingly."

Yuthura once again eyed the man as she did back at the cantina: contemplatively, cautiously, and incredulously. "What a fascinating individual you are…It makes me truly wonder if anyone has ever gotten a proper hold on you. Even now, still such a curious puzzle…. As if one has been given all the correct pieces, but still cannot make them fit to display the image clearly."

Watching the slight downward curve of his brows combined with such a trickster of a smile, it was close to amazing to see how complex yet fluid his expressions were at that very moment, the possibility that neither one on his face was accurate being a very real answer.

"A "curious puzzle", indeed…If not frustrating." Revan answered neutrally, swapping his facial expression so very smoothly for one of graveness and a need of information. "But now, I would ask that you tell me the Sith Code. It is the first and most accessible path to gaining prestige with Master Uthar, but only if I am the first."

"Then I will do my best to help you understand it; listen carefully: "Peace is a lie, there is only passion. Through passion, I gain strength. Through strength, I gain power. Through power, I gain victory. Through victory, my chains are broken. The Force shall free me."

Following every stanza as she said, the man could feel his recently awakened half recite each and every word back to her, but it much more than only an echo: with each line of the code, Revan felt what he had believed, in his past, from what was said, could easily see why the mantra seemed so empowering to him at the time.

"Simple words, yet so easily misunderstood." She continued on. "Would you care for me to explain anything?"

"I would." He answered, hearing the emotion play through her voice in a way that openly displayed how deep a bond she had with the Code; it had certainly freed her from something as well. "Peace is a lie, there is only passion"?"

"Being a former Jedi, I am sure you know that they'll have you believe peace is a desirable goal; that peace of the spirit is the way the Force is mastered, that a lack of conflict betters man." The woman explained with much animosity, "_We _know different. It is our passion…Our hate _and_ our desire…that fuels the Force. It is conflict that improves the lot of civilization and single being both."

"You speak of constant conflict…" Revan trailed in monotone, once again feeling memories resurface, all from this Code's influence, "Understandably, through conflict, strength will inevitably be gained, maybe even skill, but what is conflict if it does not know it's opposite: peace – mindlessness: an insatiable hunger that will only ravage but never heal."

"Conflict forces one to better oneself. It forces change, growth, adaptation…evolution…or even death. These are not laws we have made, but laws of the universe. Without conflict you have only stagnation."

"And without peace, you have only extermination." He responded back readily, before shaking his head at this feeling inside him: of understanding, yet not; it was flawed…Though he was pleased by the conflict in his educator's eyes from his compelling confutation. "Through passion, I gain strength"?"

"What fuels your power with the Force but your passion? The stronger, darker emotions: anger, hatred, fear…These passions _empower_ us."

"Empowerment toward destruction, then: only negative results can stem from such negative passions."

"Negative? Compared to what, exactly?" Yuthura challenged, never having a prospect so obstinate or argumentative on the Code before. "What keeps even the most rudimentary creatures alive? Fear to run, anger to fight…Without it, a creature would most surely die."

"Perhaps…but only because it has nothing more to rely on; comparing every intelligent species in this galaxy to rudimentary creatures is foolhardy. Do you not think us more adaptable than them?"

"We are far more than them, perhaps, but in some ways we are little different. To think us creatures beyond the need of simple passions is a delusion."

"I'll concede to that: all of us are slaves to baser lusts and desires at one point in our lifetime or another, but when has that been a bad thing – when has being human been transformed into a failing? And even if you do not acknowledge my point, we have one thing those creatures will never be able to experience; something far beyond passion that has the potential to not be as destructive; what empowers one more than love?"

"Little to nothing…Which is why love is more dangerous than all of those things. Love leads to anger and hatred more often than not…but it also leads to mercy – which is _far _worse. That, however," Yuthura hastily began to conclude, "is a lesson for next time."

"Then answer me this: it's curious to see any similarity at all between two enemy factions, but both the Jedi and the Sith cannot stand the thought of love and feel that it's too dangerous – could it be because love is the only state of being the embodies both ideals perfectly into one?"

"Those are treacherous thoughts…And even more disconcerting is the fact that you did not entirely set yourself into either group with your question; if you are here to become a Sith, and further the plans I have for you; I suggest you start acting more like one."

"I will take your advice under consideration, but surely you can understand why neither side has earned my loyalty? The Sith thrive on infidelity; though I can easily admit that the Jedi have failed me as well…Being misled so many times and in an endless number of ways is damaging to the mind." Revan explained eccentrically, placing two fingers on his temple for emphasis. "I fear only truth will remedy what's left of it now."

Shaking her head from the unadulterated, yet unknown complexity of the man before her from his response, the Twi'lek kept her aloof disposition. "Then accept this: our one true goal as Sith is to become stronger; to achieve our potential and not rest upon our laurels. We are the seekers of this galaxy, not the shepherds."

Revan nodded, grateful to her for what was perhaps the only truth he would receive in this place. "I see…"Through strength, I gain power"?"

"The stronger you become in the Force, the more power you will achieve. Without strife, your victory has no meaning. Without strife, you do not advance. Without strife, there is only stagnation."

"Or maybe stagnation is caused by so much strife?" He rejoined, easily turning her statement back on her. "But you'll be pleased: I actually agree with everything else you've said. Without conflict, nothing would ever be appreciated; if you did not have to work for your food, prove your aptitude, or fight for your beliefs, what point would there be to exist? Besides, this galaxy so hardly gives things for free." He sighed discontentedly while watching a guard, out of the corner of his eye, cross the intersection of their hallway. "Regrettable… "Through power, I gain victory"?"

Eying him strangely from his hasty retreat of something it seemed he would otherwise protest even more so against, Yuthura continued on. "How many sorts of victories can you imagine? Peaceful victory? Victory by sacrifice? A truce, an achievement? Unless the victory is achieved by demonstrating that your power is superior, it is only illusion; temporary, at best. _We_ seek more."

"Through victory, my chains are broken"?" He asked simply; no longer did it seem fit to add his opinions.

"This…has been argued over – and often. The chains represent our restrictions, both those placed upon us and those we place on ourselves. Ultimately, the goal of any Sith is to free herself from such restrictions. In a way, it is so we may do whatever we wish…But it is so much more than that." She digressed ardently, clearly wanting to convey this fact. "One who has freed themselves from all restrictions has reached perfection; their potential fulfilled. Perfect strength, perfect power, perfect destiny…_Imagine_ _it_. Thatis our ideal, at any rate; it is said in Sith legend that the 'Sith'ari'…the _perfect _being…will one day lead us. But," Her lack of faith was apparent, "perhaps it will only stay a legend."

"Do you no longer believe in this Sith'ari?"

Her dark lips opened, but closed before she began again. "I…more so wonder what a being like that would be like. The legends say the Sith'ari will destroy us all…and make us stronger than ever, but; I suppose that is only legend as well. Perfection is…to me, a goal; I think, rather than a state of being. The Jedi would argue against that as well, no doubt."

"The Force shall free me." Revan stated more than asked, feeling this stanza the only significant part of their Code, the only part in it that he even vaguely desired: in the past and even now.

"The Force is our servant and our master. Our teacher and our companion. A weapon and a tool. Put simply: know it, and know the universe – master it, and master the universe. Strive for perfection and the Force shall reward you."

"Thank you, Mistress." Revan concluded sincerely, finding it interesting to hear such an evocative doctrine after such a long period of time. "I'll see Master Uthar now."

"I am not surprised by your confidence: the Force is strong with you…Master it and it shall serve you well." She advised, pleased that this man truly did seem to keep up with what she told him, even if not agreeing to all of it. "But enough for now; you have had an excellent start – go, gain more prestige. I will notify you when the time is right."

Giving one last shallow bow of his head, the man took his leave; making a clean right at the end of his hallway, Revan eventually passed the same guard he had seen before and offered an innocent smile when he was greeted diplomatically.

"Hm…Don't think I've ever seen you around here before, so you must be fresh meat." The guard lightly jeered. "Enjoying the academy so far, student?"

"Quite a bit, actually, though besides my room, this place is close to claustrophobic." He complained before giving Jolee a backward glance. "It would not reflect well on my part if you were to speak out of turn, here; make sure to control your tongue while in public, slave."

Seeing the intense, but not severe look held in his eyes, the older man took the clever hint. "Unless spoken to, you won't hear a word out of me, master."

The guard nodded approvingly, clearly contented with the display. "Good; you have a strong command over you slave – which means less hassle for me. Keep it up." He congratulated before returning to his rounds.

Sighing, Revan flashed his companion an apologetic look. "Who knew you were such a team player?"

"I may be a cantankerous, old grouch, but even I know when to keep my mouth shut." Jolee explained. "Just don't you go getting used to it."

He flashed a discreet grin. "Too late."

Relying on his impeccable memory to lead him the rest of the way, it was not long before the duo arrived in the main chamber where the initial orientation had taken place for the prospects. Golden eyes quickly indentifying his target, Revan made his way to the meditating Sith master kneeling on the floor, a bit away from the middle of the room.

"Ah…Greetings, young one." Uthar uttered out evenly before his pupil could fully approach, eyes opening to address him as he rose. "You have much to do, yet…You have gained _little_ prestige. You will have to work quickly if you hope to best the others."

Presenting the man with a small bow out of respect, Revan smiled, once again fascinated by how very well his tone lacked strong emotion unlike most other Sith in this place. "Then it would be wise to start now; Master: I have learned the Code of the Sith."

"Then finish the Code as I speak it; "Peace is a lie, there is only…"?"

_Interesting, if not predictable. _"Passion."

"Through passion I gain…"

_But this can't be it…. _"Strength."

"Through strength I gain…"

_If it were this easy… _"Power."

"Through power I gain…"

_Only a simple word game… _"Victory."

"Through victory…"?"

_What legitimacy would there be in becoming a Sith? _"My chains are broken."

"The Force shall free me"." He completed. "_Yes_, good: you have, indeed, learned the Code of the Sith. Speaking the words and knowing the words are, however, two very different things…Tell me then, true or false: it is our passion that fuels the Force."

The younger man was surprised with this second, more demanding application, though not at all displeased; he was sure he would have known the answer regardless, but he was glad to see that having Yuthura's in-depth explanation was not a complete waste of time: who would know his beliefs better than Uthar's right hand?

"True, of course. Our passions, especially those that are darker, "empower" us." He loosely quoted.

"Well done. Your answer shows me there is no need for additional testing…You know the Code; _very_ impressive." A glimmer of approval shone in his pale eyes. "Go, now…You have done well, but you have not impressed me enough to declare you the victor. I have other matters to attend to."

A swift nod. "I won't keep you then: I'll be on my way."

"Very well. You have impressed me…" Uthar trailed as he lowered down into a kneeling position once more and shut his eyes, "Definitely a strong start."

----

"I understand you have gained prestige with Master Uthar, at least a little. That is good…We are one step closer towards completing my plan." Yuthura Ban praised before frowning. "Were I you, however, I would not get too excited just yet. You still have plenty left to do."

"No need to worry: I have little to get excited about." Revan answered earnestly, knowing that she would think he was referring to her master, even when he was not. "Given our arrangement, I've come back here because I am sure you know the best way for me to gain even more prestige."

"Our arrangement"?" She echoed back with an inquiring tone. "So it's safe to assume you haven't revealed my intentions to Uthar for more prestige; a place by his side instead of mine?"

Giving his best effort to a look that would convey muted shock, and maybe even a tinge of indignation, he shook his head. "You think me that ambitious?"

"There aren't many who come here not to be."

"And there aren't many given what you've offered." Revan rebutted just as ably. "Listen: if there's one thing I've learned in life, it's to avoid being greedy; it only ends up biting you in the ass. Sith or not: I feel you can appreciate that." He stared unblinkingly as violet eyes probed his own while searching for some hint of deceit or trickery, his bold candor being reinforced with the fact that this was probably the one truth he had supplied.

"Perhaps…" Yuthura finally responded, "Forgive my distrust, but you don't last long in our world without it – that and I can't sense any deception from you, which gives me two options: you're telling me the truth…or you're a fatal liar."

His chuckle served the sole purpose of showing she couldn't be serious. "Not a useful skill for a former Jedi."

"Yes, but you're proving to be a quick learner…Though that's enough of this for now, we wouldn't want to rouse suspicion; I will give you what you've asked for. Keep in mind that what I offer are merely suggestions; do not let yourself be limited by them: search for more opportunities." The woman recommended, not wanting him to become complacent just in what she provided. "There are a group of students who refused an order by Master Uthar to execute a group of civilians in the colony. Uthar declared that they were to be executed, themselves, but the students escaped and fled before the order could be carried out."

_Good for them. _"Have they fled the planet?"

"No; we are certain that they have not left Korriban. No doubt they have not gotten far and are simply in hiding…We just do not know where, exactly. This is where opportunity lies; if you were to locate them and carry out Uthar's order, I am sure he would be most appreciative…Shall I go on?" She presented optionally, seeing him mull the suggestion over in his head.

"No; I should…focus on one task at a time, lest I get sloppy and rush through." He explained to her, "Thanks for the info; I'll return when I find those students."

"I suggest you hurry; those against you are already buzzing with hidden agendas and secret objectives. It would be wise for you to keep tabs of their process while also seeking out openings – and an advantage; Lashowe, for example, would be an excellent choice if you were to pursue this: she is too gullible, too trusting." The Twi'lek raised a knowing brow. "I am all but positive that you could talk her into letting you…_help _her somehow."

"Are you? I can't see it, myself, being worth it." Revan replied, disagreeing with her second viewpoint. "Out of all of my competitors; she's the only one holding a grudge – a fact that I'm sure you've seen. What sense, exactly, would there be in trying to become her ally?"

"To be positive you know what she knows." She answered. "I have already told you that I would hamper the other's progress in any way that I could, but if my advice is not put to good use; you've wasted my efforts. No one said this would be without its challenges, but I chose you because I was sure you had the ability to get the job done."

Feeling a small spasm affect his face as his jaw tightened from concealed exasperation, the man relaxed his expression before forcing a smile. "How…encouraging to know you have such faith in me."

Yuthura returned his smile, placing two fingers to his face's proximity and caressing the air between before retracting the slender digits. "I have faith in your role in my plan, Kaleb…Take that however you wish – now go. Time is of the essence."

Revan provided a quaint bow of his head to show he understood before turning to watch her depart the room they occupied, raising a hand to silence Jolee until his instructor was assuredly around the corner.

"All right." He dropped his hand and turned back around. "We should be fine for now; she's out of hearing range."

His companion scoffed before plopping down on the centered bed. "I'm too old for this spy crap, dammit."

"Believe it or not, you're doing well."

"Hmph; well someone has to stick to the plan." Jolee replied critically, his forehead forming several deep wrinkles. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought your goal was to come off as an idiot – when, exactly, do you think you're going to start?"

"You mean with Yuthura…." He inferred with a jaded tone.

"No: I meant the other attractive Twi'lek who can't keep her eyes off you." The older man explained cynically. "The way the two of you talk, it should be outlawed on most planets."

Revan gave him a blank stare before slowly shaking his head. "Who did what now?"

"Don't you play dumb with me, kid – that killer voice of hers becomes even more dangerous when she's speaking to you." He tsked. "And here I was thinking your girlfriend's accent was exotic enough to keep you in line, then 'Little Miss Dark Side' comes into the picture…"

Stifling the sudden urge to laugh as a crooked grin grew on his lips, the younger man managed to only let amused puffs of air escape his nose. "Oh man…"Little Miss Dark Side"…?" He clapped his hands, "_Outstanding_ – even for you, old man. Bravo."

"You're laughing now…but don't blame me when, after this mission is done, she puts you six feet under."

Amusement desisting into a quieted hum of contentment, Revan smiled wistfully before speaking. "It would definitely be a slow and painful death. And that would be a kind mercy…For what was shared before."

He suddenly grew silent as his mind painfully realized the fact that nowhere in his statement was he able to properly name the subject they both spoke off – he couldn't even get close to it.

_Why can't I?__** You've been through this before.**_

_Am I blocking it out? __**You still can't handle what's happened.**_

_Why does it have to be like this? __**You don't want to feel.**_

_Can I __**not**__ face it? __**There's just **__so __**much pain.**_

"_Gods_…_too_ _much_…." He mumbled under his breath, eyes glazed and unfocused as he stumbled back slightly.

"Kid…Kid? Snap out of it." Jolee called out apprehensively, before shaking him firmly. "_Revan_!"

Consciousness returned to his golden brown orbs as he placed an unsteady hand to the side of his head, massaging the spot lightly while he forcibly blinked several times to welcome reality once again.

"It was only a matter of time." The old Jedi grumbled out disapprovingly, worried but not surprised by his unusual act. "You keep pushing yourself like this, and you won't have to worry about Bastila killing you, you'll do a fine job on your own."

Revan exhaled dismissively. "We all die; the best you can do is make your death worthwhile."

His companion scoffed. "Is that what she would want?"

The young man's once obstinate gaze faltered, staring at a wall now instead of Jolee's face, fleeing from the truth of his words and the accompanying feelings. "I feel nothing for Yuthura…And if what you've said is true: what a wretched individual to be attracted to a man as empty as I. There's not even sympathy, despite what she's survived…All I can do is sense what's familiar: her hatred." He clarified, not needing to look up to know the other could not understand. "That is the only reason why I won't betray her, the only reason she's seen even a small portion of my intellect." His eyes connected to the pair of older brown ones in front of him intrepidly. "But even that won't stop me from using her: just as she tries to use me."

Swallowing in an attempt to alleviate his dry mouth, Jolee sighed deeply. "I've never lied to you, kid, so I won't start now: you're not as good a deceiver as you think you are – and I hope to the Force that those eyes of yours aren't a view of your soul…Because if it is, the only thing that comes close to describing it are the contents of some dreary abyss."

"And that is how I feel." Revan answered insensitively, before his fingers caressed the precious sphere resting on his neck despite the acute pain from the action, "Descending further and further into darkness…Only one can save me now."

Closing his eyes from his words, the wise Jedi knew that any other warning would be useless: the damn fool had fallen into the worst kind of love. "To think I thought it the other way around."

His reply was a fragile smile.

"All right; you've made your choice: just remember the hard part is dealing with it – you need to make sure that being this ruthless is going to be worth it all in the end…Now let's get out of here before I start speaking in parables, dammit."

-------------------

HK-47's mechanical head swiveled, almost wildly, to and fro, surveying the area for any more enemies before turning to its creator. _**Approving Proclamation**__: This new task is already proving to be gratifying, Master: based on that recent attack; the probability of bloodshed is already ten times greater than what you had assigned me to before. I can feel my blasters already tingling in anticipation – this should be fun!_

Revan grinned as he re-clipped a single lightsaber, not needing both for the unexpected, but small group of shyracks. "To tell you the truth, I was just as surprised no one came snooping around: I thought at least one of my competitors would try to find out more on the new guy; maybe I'm giving them more credit than they deserve…Or Yuthura's doing a decent job."

"I wouldn't presume either one: besides the fact that you haven't talked to any of them, you certainly haven't gained enough of an advantage for them to start to worry." Jolee explained as he put his own weapon away. "That, and we really haven't been away from that room of yours long enough to give any of them a chance for a successful infiltration."

"True…I was being overly zealous; if someone was bold enough to break in there, I wanted to confront them personally and deal with them in a manner I saw fit." He responded back distractedly as he approached the entrance of a dark grotto.

_**Accusation**__: You are a skillful trickster, Master – you knew from the very beginning that there would be no serious threat while you were around yet you tricked me into thinking otherwise. _

"I just let you believe what you wanted to hear, HK; you're the only one to blame."

_**Compliment**__: You are a harsh master, Master…I continue to like you more and more._

"Well, now that that's settled," Jolee told them with feigned, if not testy relief, "maybe you can tell me why we're about to enter the very cave that Tariga fellow from the academy told us to avoid at all costs from the shyrack infestation. Was Kashyyyk not enough for you?"

The younger man, turning away from his initial examinations, cocked his head somewhat in thought. "A mysterious cave that you're told to avoid and several missing people that have been confirmed to still be on Korriban's surface…You have to see the likelihood between the two: what better place for a couple of runaways to hide then a place where the Sith have instructed most of their own not to go?"

"And what if they're not in there, since you seem to have this all worked out?"

He shrugged indifferently. "Well, we cleared the shyrack cave and made it safe for our fellow Sith…That's gotta be worth something…right?"

"Let's just get this over with." Jolee responded dryly before heading in the direction of the cavern entrance as well.

"That's the spirit." Revan commented with an unenthusiastic thumbs-up before stepping into the murky depths ahead of him; his eyes automatically readjusted to the dim light, a small distribution of the Force helping him to see easily. "And check this out: a straight shot with no pissed shyracks in sight. You have to admit, old man, for my reputation, this is damn good."

"Hmph, just give it time; everything will go to hell in a hand basket soon enough."

"Oh ye of little faith…."

Hearing the Jedi behind him grunt skeptically, he continued onward, hardly taking four more steps before a bloodcurdling, inhuman screech echoed loudly throughout the entire cave.

Jolee raised his hand in the air with exasperation. "Like clockwork."

Revan sighed resignedly before unclipping both of his lightsabers, knowing that whatever creature made that noise would probably try to kill them all; following habit, he willingly ignored the deadly sign of imminent death and followed up the trail only to spot a mauled Sith to his left out of his peripherals.

"Impressive." He commented offhandedly as he used his foot to roll the body over, "Whatever got to him got all the way through this guy's armor…Though, seeing how unusually clean these openings are, and the fact that the skin has eroded enough to expose muscle, it almost looks like some form of acid-"

Another disturbing scream reverberated through the caverns, though it seemed a lot more feminine and less territorial.

HK-47's 'eye' slits illuminated warningly as it raised its blasters toward the darkened clearing in front of the small group. _**Analysis**__: Master, the shriek we just heard appeared to be in the same range of a female organic likely in extreme pain or at least in an undesirable confrontation. __**Query**__: I assume that on the inevitable encounter with either source, eliminate all threats, Master? _

Narrowing his eyes in an attempt to make out a form in the dense fog that lay before them but only noticing stalagmites, the man turned back to the droid with a nod. "As long as they're not human, go crazy…Somebody, or something, wants our attention and we just can't turn back _now_…" His words faded sardonically as he resumed their trek, "Though I have a feeling there's something far worse in here than some pissy shyracks, and we're going to find out what that thing is – try to keep up, old man."

"Yeah, yeah…" Jolee grumbled out brusquely, "Unlike some people, I don't get my kicks off of rushing toward unimaginable danger."

"Complaining shows you love it." The other claimed matter-of-factly, if not obnoxiously.

A high pitched almost metallic sounding groan made Revan wince in discomfort before he quickly activated his sabers from the faint view of rapidly moving flesh, the soft blue and violet lights reflecting smoothly against the jagged, cavern walls.

_**Cautionary Warning**__: A group of approaching life forms have been detected to the right of the fork ahead, Master; preparing to engage. _

High energy blaster energy bolts fired raucously in the once reasonably quiet area as a random shyrack abruptly dove in for a surprise attack to its owner's head before the droid expertly landed several shots in the center of its bulbous body until it fell dead. Numerous angered shrieks promptly rang out as five more of the flying creatures zoomed toward the trio, Revan easily decapitating both their wings with a deft flick of his dual lightsabers while Jolee and HK executed what remained of the writhing, fallen beasts, the older Jedi finishing off the last of the shyracks with a fatal push of the Force before seamlessly searing its deformed abdomen with his saber and pinning it to a large rock.

Watching the geezer hold his hand out, Revan lifted up a brow in interest as the green lightsaber easily flew back to its possessor, the impaled victim of the precise attack crumpling swiftly to the ground.

"Well, well, well: look who came ready to party –" His weapons made the familiar sound of deactivation, "pretty old school method, but effective."

"Hmph; and I suppose chopping of essential body parts of those mindless brutes are what all the kids are doing these days?"

He flashed a dark smile. "Only the _cool _kids." Smile widening a bit from the scoff he was given, Revan turned to HK-47. "Nice job with that first shyrack, HK: we would have no doubt been ambushed if it wasn't for those sharp sensors of yours. Whenever you are able, keep the two of us constantly in the know on any more surprise attacks; we'll kill them off easier that way."

_**Agreement**__: That was my thought as well, Master. You continue to show excellent logical skills…for a meatbag, that is._

"Then I stake this a win win…We should keep moving, though: I don't want to attract more shyracks to all the noise we just made, and I especially don't want to gain the notice of the other thing that's making all this racket before I get a proper handle on it." The man explained, continuing to follow the right path since they were already in it.

The trek through the cavern's winding tunnels, while progressive, was not particularly fast paced as the constant assault of primitive and abnormal screeches halted them to a cautious crawl in anticipation of danger; luckily, with the use of HK-47's advanced sensors, large clusters of possible enemies were easily indentified and just as swiftly taken care of. Half a dozen discovered dead bodies and a few more attacks later, Revan found an active fire situated in a once infested but currently unoccupied clearing; becoming far more confident in his hunch of the runaways hiding here, a definite clue was the additional discovery of another lifeless body: unlike the others who sported Sith armor, though, the bloody man wore Sith robes.

_So one of them died…. _He bent his knees to examine it closer, aided by the wan light of the fire, _But this one doesn't seem to sport the same injuries as the other Sith, which means he was probably killed by them, trackers sent to hunt them down. If the others survived, they're not completely stupid; they didn't even bury the body, all to make sure they're presence remained unknown: if anything, this guy's death made them even more careful. They probably even move from clearing to clearing every few days just to throw off their scent._

Rising once again, Revan gave his two companions a 'forward' hand gesture to show them to keep going: they were close now and little things were coming together in a big way – they had to be on the right track, and it was only a matter of time before they found what they were searching for. Coming up to another fork, they were presented with the nasty surprise of aggressive tuk'ata, these animals far slower than the shyracks, but smarter and more powerful; despite their unexpected occurrence, they were still taken down handily as the three continued on until spotting a competent frag mine.

"Last time I checked, mines could only be installed by humans. What other use is there for a mine besides protecting something against something else?" Their leader rationalized before he successfully disabled the trap.

_**Observation**__: I have just picked up another small group of life sources, Master. This group is surprisingly immobile and do not appear to pose a threat at this time. __**Query**__: Perhaps these are the rogue students you were searching for?_

Jolee shook his head. "You and your hunches, kid; and I have to admit, they're as amazing as they are deadly."

"I feel it's a good balance." He answered absentmindedly before coming to a halt.

Pausing as he trained his ears on the sound of what seemed like a faint cough, Revan's face grew grim as he wandered into the now unobstructed clearing, his eyes immediately taking in three shadowed forms before one of them sprang forward and an accented voice ordered him to stop.

"Did you think we would not notice such a poorly executed ambush?" The womanly figure questioned harshly while approaching him, her grey eyes stern and confused expression becoming clearer. "You are far from the first person who has tried to kill us and I have no doubt you won't be the last. Now, whoever you are – we...." She suddenly faltered, experiencing the power held of the man who stood in front of her, before beginning again, "We're not going back to the academy! We'll kill you rather than go back there!"

Raising his hands in a sign of surrender, Revan slowly took a few tentative steps closer so he would be able to clearly make out who he was talking to. "Not necessary; I have no intention of bringing any of you anywhere."

Her wariness grew as she, in turn, took another step back. "So what is it, then? If you're not here to kill us or bring us back, why are you here? Speak up!" She then ordered brashly.

Focusing briefly on the only two Twi'lek companions she had, he looked back to her. "How about we cut a deal? I'll answer whatever you wish to know, if you just answer one question for me so I can be sure: are the three of you the renegade students that ran away?"

The dark-skinned woman's distrust was evident on her face as she clutched her lightsaber a little tighter. "So…You've heard of us already, and no doubt about what we had done – or more accurately, what we failed to do. We ran and fled to this cave before Master Uthar could execute us; is that so hard to believe?"

"No; it isn't: I'm new at the academy, but Uthar appears heartless…I apologize; my manners are lacking: my name is Kaleb, nice to meet you…" He trailed off in hopes that she would finish the rest.

"Thalia May, is my name…And I suppose, seeing how you haven't attacked us, it's nice to meet you too. We all refused to murder a bunch of people on a whim of Master Uthar…so here we are." She sighed tiredly, letting the pains of their existence become evident on her face. "We thought becoming Sith would make our lives easier, it be the one thing that we every wanted, but that turned out to be wrong and untrue. It's already bad enough that we all bought into a lie, all we want now is to get out of here – fair enough?"

He nodded solemnly, reflecting briefly on the fact that sparing any of them would not gain him the promised prestige he came for before casting the thought aside. "Perhaps, I can help the three of you out then."

"Help us?" She scoffed in utter skepticism from his offer, not believing it one bit. "You? A student at the same academy that we've been trying to escape from all this time? What, in that head of yours, could make you believe that we are all foolish enough to trust you so easily – that this isn't some complex trick to weaken our defenses so you can strike us all down with a surprise attack?"

"It's good that you're cautious, and, not that I don't mind, but I'm pretty sure there will be no convincing you no matter what I say; so then; give me a chance to prove my sincerity to you with action."

Analyzing the aspects of his face in correlation with his words, Thalia relented. "All right…You really want to help us? I can easily think of a way: you must have wondered why we're still here; why we would stick around when we've already escaped? We're stuck in this place…There is a passage to the surface through these caves, but there's this large creature who blocks the way. We just…Try as we might, we can't defeat it." She admitted despairingly, "If you could kill it and clear up the passageway, there would be nothing stopping our escape – that would help enough. Do you think you'd be able to achieve something like this?"

"While hearing that with even the three of your combined power did not defeat this creature is a bit perplexing; I will give my best effort in helping all of you escape this place."

"I've been betrayed and seen it too many times to just take your word on it; I'll believe it when I see it…But…If you could, we would be…grateful."

Concluding their dialogue with an understanding nod, Revan, with his two companions in tow, made his way straight through the continued pathway; the man easily disarmed two more mines that no doubt were also meant for the runaways protection before entering the biggest clearing yet, spotting a narrow trail that could be used to cross the ravine to his left. Making his way to the earthy bridge quickly, another loud unearthly scream, louder than any of the rest, made them all stop.

"Aw hell: is that a…?" Jolee began.

"Terentatek…" Revan completed before scoffing in amazement of his luck, "Déjà fucking vu – I have to fight one of these indestructible bastards again."

_**Statement**__: Not necessarily, Master. _HK-47 interjected in his usual concise tone. _**Advisement**__: From what I have observed, the creature has stayed on that side because it would be a fatal risk if something went wrong while getting across to where we are standing now; surely, you've noticed that it's made no attempt to confront us yet, Master? Getting it onto this narrow path would be a great advantage to us as it would have limited mobility. _

"Why not take it a step further? You and I can use our Force abilities to push the thing over the edge and be done with it." Jolee added, liking the thought of little fighting on their part.

Their leader nodded approvingly. "Not a bad idea; great thinking: both of you." He brandished one of his lightsabers and smiled roguishly. "But seeing how I really didn't contribute to the brains of this plan; I'll just have to be the bait – HK, you're a good shot: cover me. Old man…If I get poisoned again; it's your ass."

_**Affirmation**__: Understood, Master. _HK responded as the familiar whir of his charging blasters filled the air, opening firing on the beast as his creator ran off toward it.

"Oh, well: sure; the droid gets flattery and I get a threat." The older Jedi remarked sarcastically as he moved past the firing mechanism. "Guess I'll just watch another annoying trait of his spring into action – recklessness."

Sprinting across the rocky path, Revan openly taunted the creature as he got closer, successfully gaining its full and undivided attention as it released a fierce roar and jutted its tusk like teeth into the air before stomping to him.

_That's it; come and get me…. _

The man decreased his speed a tiny fraction as he saw that it was now at the start of the earthy bridge and gaining momentum, before stopping completely when he was almost hallway across.

"Now, time to look like a threat." Revan mumbled under his breath before he spun his saber around two consecutive times before holding his hand out in a mock use of the Force, yelling nonsense and swinging the saber wildly. "Blah-gah! Ragga blooga-blah! Ooba gooba bak – you_ ugly _SOB!"

Falling into a sudden rage, the terentatek made a mad dash toward him, another enraged roar emitting from its enormous mouth as one of HK's blaster bolts hit its massive arm; shaking the pain off, it lowered its head to ram its current opponent.

"Ok – Jolee!" The younger man exclaimed behind him as he stopped swinging his weapon and readied himself for a real Force attack. "Do it-"

A tremendous force abruptly sent him flying before he landed harshly on the ground with a grunt; eyes narrowing from confusion, Revan spit to remove some dirt that had collected in his mouth.

"You've gotta be – it pushed me?" He asked out loud, though to no one in particular. "Like immunity to most Force attacks isn't enough; it gets some offensive too…."

Acrobatically jumping to his feet, Revan was not surprised to see the blur of an ivory claw moving to attack, his seasoned instincts allowing him to evade the sharp object while scoring his own hit, though not lethal, as his lightsaber's blade did not hack all the way through its plate like head.

"Argh;" He grunted with excretion as he pressed down harder on his weapon, "you're almost as hardheaded as me…Anytime you're ready, old man!"

Jolee was only a few feet away from him. "Unless you want to plummet to your death with it, stop showing off and get out of the way."

Cracking a small smile, Revan pressed down on his toes, before using the Force to increase his jump, and landed on the terentatek's large cranium before using both hands to tug out his weapon, allowing the force of the action to propel his body backward, and send the creature stumbling, exactly next to where his companion stood.

"The point was to _not _show off."

The other shrugged. "Can't disappoint -- it's expected."

Jolee harrumphed before both of them seamlessly performed Force push on the still disoriented and aggravated beast, its gargled roar accompanying its great fall as it faded, like its body, in the immeasurable darkness below.

"Nice…I was actually a tiny bit worried it wouldn't work." Brushing his hands together in a sense of accomplishment, Revan looked to the man next to him. "Rushing in without a plan was pretty risky…But eh, if it ain't broke, don't fix it."

The older man eyed him gallingly. "That makes about as much sense as that babble you were spouting to provoke the terentatek."

"To you, maybe; though I think you need to start looking at the brighter side of things: I didn't get poisoned, you're still alive _because _I didn't get poisoned, and we're on our way to helping three people get on with their lives – there's probably even a nice moral in there somewhere."

_**Commentary**__: You showed great finesse in killing that terentatek, Master – it was a joy to witness its pain as you gouged its head and then ripped your weapon back out, ultimately sending it spiraling to its demise afterwards…All with the help of my blasters, of course._

"Thank you, HK; I can always count on you for proper praise and appreciation."

"I can see why you like that droid so much now; besides killing things, the only other thing it does is kiss your ass." Jolee commented bluntly as he began to make his way back across the trail.

_**Objection**__: You are incorrect, meatbag – we all know that the master keeps me around to comment on his decisions. Isn't that right, Master? _

He grinned at the two's exchange as they all made their way back. "Sure; why not? It's definitely more interesting with HK around."

"Well, that's one thing we can agree on; never a dull moment with that machine."

_**Insulted Statement**__: "Machine"? I am a one of a kind, intelligent droid built by the master himself, you decrepit meatbag; you would do well not to forget it._

Revan chuckled but did not comment as he knew both his companions had far too strong a personality for him to take sides; it was a simple task of making a left turn to the last opening and going straight since they had not gone too far. Hearing the iconic _snap_ _hiss _of an activated lightsaber, their leader raised his hand in a nonthreatening way before watching Thalia May deactivate and lower her weapon.

"I'm sorry; this cavern holds many dangers and it's never unwise to be prepared." The woman apologized quickly before gaining an inquisitive stare. "But tell me…Is there news? Is the passageway clear?"

"Good news for all of you, actually: the three of you are free to go. The path is now travelable and the creature is dead."

Shock filled her grey eyes as her two companions chattered excitedly in their alien language. "It…it's clear? We can finally leave after all this time?" She released a shaky breath while placing a hand on her chest. "I can't…Thank you so much. This…I wasn't expecting help from anyone who belonged to the academy – even now we were ready for you to change your mind and try and kill us. I guess we aren't the only ones who don't…_agree _with everything."

"No; you're definitely not alone, and personally: I never have done too well with groups. I doubt this one will be any different."

"I'm a bit confused then; just why did you join the academy? No offense, but your actions today clearly show that you don't share the Sith ideal, and you certainly don't seem to have any respect toward it…Why exactly are you here?"

Revan smiled secretively. "Ah, ah, ah: curiosity killed the tuskcat. Suffice it to say, that you should be satisfied with the fact that my being here was beneficial to all of you – what more is there need to know?"

Eyes narrowing slightly with an amalgamation of both suspicion and interest, Thalia eventually shrugged it off. "Very well; I'll respect your secrecy, though I will give you a word of warning: no matter how good you may think you are, Uthar and the others expose any weakness, it's only a matter of time before he finds out what you're up to."

"You might be right…but I don't plan on staying on this world anywhere near long enough for that to occur."

The woman nodded, respecting this assured confidence his words carried without it seeming like hot air. "Well, I wish you luck either way. We will find our own path to follow; maybe…maybe the Jedi will accept us. I've seen how evil the dark side is…" She trailed contemplatively, "It wouldn't hurt to try."

"The Jedi will take all of you back – no doubt willingly; they'd never miss the opportunity to convince you that all the hell you've seen and experienced was only a necessary test for deeper understanding of something or other." Jolee assured them all in a candid tone. "After that, they'll no doubt guilt you for the rest of your lives for "falling" until you feel horrible enough about yourself to never leave."

"Probably, but I would try to go for what makes you happy:" Revan suggested, "dark and light become pretty irrelevant then."

"I-I'll…think about it." Thalia answered unsurely, a bit overwhelmed with the information she received as she would have to think on it some more. "At any rate," She and the others all gave a deep bow of gratitude, "thank you all again – I mean it. You've saved our lives."

---------------

"All right: relying on the information we've received from our friend Dak back in the ruins," Revan explained with narrowed, probing eyes as their small group unceremoniously entered the tomb of Tulak Hord, "logic would prove that this is the tomb that holds that old hermit I've been told about. If it is in fact Uthar's master hiding here, killing him off will no doubt earn me some prestige."

Coughing noisily before flapping his hand from side to side in an attempt to clear up some of the thick dust in the air, Jolee scoffed. "Well this _has_ to be an improvement: you take us from a dank cavern to an even danker tomb – do you even remember the meaning of 'break', anymore?" He complained, once again protesting that they stop and take a small time out only to be ignored. "That thing you give old people because they're _old_?"

"You're the one that told Yuthura how much I love tombs; now's the time to prove it right." The younger man readily answered as he confidently strode forward. "I actually thought you'd appreciate this a bit more: a relic among relics must be a comforting thing. I even thought you and Jorak could both reminisce the 'good old days'."

"Well I'm so glad that your smartass capabilities aren't affected…." The Jedi replied satirically.

_**Commentary**__: While a dialogue between meatbags is certainly entertaining, I feel I should warn you that you are currently a few feet away from the blasting radius of a stun mine, Master. _HK-47 informed dutifully.

Revan nodded before turning to his right and kneeling. "I've already noticed, but good to know you're staying alert, HK." Reaching into one of the several compartments that made his belt, the man took out a clump of repair parts before opening the access panel of a damaged droid. "And I hope you won't get jealous, but I'm about to add another droid to our little team."

Seamlessly repairing the fallen droid's shields, weaponry, and targeting systems, he keyed in the command for it to go into patrol mode, despite that it would no longer be able to be modified even if seriously injured in battle. He closed the panel as two beeps sounded out in confirmation of his actions before a blue energy field hummed to life around the rising machine; the man rose with it before it scanned him, acknowledging that he was not a hostile, doing the same for his companions, before scurrying deeper inside the tomb, the same mine that HK had warned about being activated without any harm to the undeterred droid.

Hearing a screech reverberate in the area mere seconds before the mine had blown, Revan looked back with a smile. "Worked like a charm. Sure; I could have easily disarmed the mine myself, but isn't it that much more interesting to have a decoy attract all our potential enemies and kill them in our stead?"

_**Observation**__: Very ingenious, Master; that was an inventive way to make use of such a rudimentary droid. I certainly could not have made such a simple model as useful as you have managed._

"I don't really know how useful it will be to us, but let's find out." He commented, following the patrol droid's direction as he and the others walked up a ramp to a higher level.

Just as his eyes connected to the top of the hill, where he was able to peek up at the covered view, Revan witnessed four tuk'ata suddenly pounce the lone droid as it fired at them all with its blasters of hit them hard with its blunt arms relentlessly; it was slow, monotonous work, but the group's patience paid off as it had successfully, by itself, slain all of the beasts.

"That's one tough little droid you patched up, kid." Jolee announced, actually surprised the mechanism could take on so many enemies at one time. "Maybe instead of letting it destroy itself, you should switch this other one here and let it take its place." He suggested, thrusting a thumb in HK-47's direction. "There would definitely be a lot less lip, and a hell of a lot less blood."

Revan rubbed his chin in mock thought. "You know…That's not a bad idea: I could probably still sell HK to that Czerka rep, get good money out of it too…."

_**Objection**__: That is so unfair, Master! Have I not brought you a great deal of satisfaction?_

"Relax, HK: it was only a joke." His owner assured, finding its dramatics amusing although Jolee did not. "At least, my part was, anyway."

_**Statement**__: That hurts, Master – even if you only say it was a "joke"._ HK-47 told him in a convincing 'hurt' tone._ This is my life you're talking about._

"I'll try to keep that in mind – for now, though, let's keep up with our decoy: there's been a noticeable halt in blaster fire."

Continuing up the steep hill, it was not long before an even higher pitched screech was heard to their right as the battle droid was now fighting a large group of shyracks in a room further away, its once vibrant blue energy shield now flickering weakly as the creatures attacked from all sides.

Revan frowned. "It's going to fail soon, and to a pack of those bastards, as well; what a shame, but it'll have its revenge."

"And how's that?"

"Well, any droid that I tinker around with has a self-destruct function once it realizes its destruction is imminent. I wouldn't be surprised if even you do too, HK, though I think yours is activated when someone tries to eject crucial information out of you." He commented absently, "In summary, it's one last kamikaze attack: an electrical surge that fries everything in its range – which is why I've kept such a safe distance away all this time."

A loud explosion abruptly rang out in the area as if to prove his claims, the bright white light from it temporarily making it impossible see anything until the flash disappeared just as rapidly as it had come, the sound of several heavy thuds accompanying it.

Blinking to clear his vision, the young man nodded at the sight that met his eyes when he approached the upper room. "There you have it: every last shyrack dead."

Jolee shook his head. "Remind me to ask you one day what trait of yours isn't considered deadly."

Revan smiled lightly at his comment before confirming that there was nothing of interest left in the room and turning to leave. "Dead end here, and there's only one other path we can take. Let's go."

Taking the left path this time around, the trio quickly made their way down the straightforward path; the only thing slowing them down, even more so than the bonus pack of aggressive tuk'ata, the avoidance of the random torrent of rocks that rained down from the ancient ceilings and tried to kill Jolee and him, at least, with blunt force trauma.

"Well, this must mean something." Revan announced disinterestedly, as his eyes looked up from a large computer console to a young corpse lying a little ways from his feet. "A student conveniently died right before approaching this door here."

"Or Jorak did this to scare other students away." Jolee added, giving his own opinion on the matter. "Trust me; I know a few things about being a hermit: we're not keen on visitors."

"There's that, and the possibility that he also left it to be a challenge, a dare for any person brave enough to keep going." The younger man's brow furrowed thoughtfully. "This feels wrong…I find it hard to believe that an old Sith master would fight every student head on nobly; I want both of you to be ready for the unexpected: willingly or not, we're gonna fall into Jorak's plans." He turned around to walk back to the computer. "We'll let him catch us," He pressed a few key buttons on the large keyboard before easily unlocking the door, "so we can catch him."

The whirring of gears was heard by all three as the complex door slowly unlatched and slid open audibly, revealing another door at the end of a long pathway.

Chuckling quietly to himself, Revan shook his head as he disregarded his instincts screaming of the danger he was walking into. "Damn…This just screams 'trap'."

He inhaled deeply to only push the same breath out as he took one last glance behind to the others before striding forward – green smoke abruptly hissed out of unknown hoses. Sight going first as the thick smog began to fill the area quickly, HK-47 was the only one who was not affected as Revan and Jolee fell into a coughing fit.

"W-what the hell-" The older man sputtered angrily, as he couldn't even finish his statement as the toxic fumes entered his lungs.

"Hold your breath! It's some type of poisonous ga-" Their leader coughed harshly before rolling up his undershirt behind his robe and covering his mouth and nose, even though he knew it would not stop the poison from entering his system – but it would slow it down. "HK…We're both going to pass out soon…I need you to act like you're being affected."

_**Query**__: Why can I not just shoot the Sith meatbag, Master? He is obviously worthy of being killed for attempting to gas you. _

Coughing even more as he dropped to his knees, he placed his head to the floor where it the gas was less dense. "Need him to…think we're helpless – have…to make sure no more students…kidnapped – hurry and deactivate, that's an order!" The man commanded with the last of his strength as he felt his muscles relax involuntarily, his body no longer moving to his will.

_**Acquiescence**__: Very well, Master; logging off. _

Watching the droid's form power down, Revan released a heavy sigh as he let his undershirt slip from his face; Jolee was already knocked out and it had begun to enter his system even as the hissing of the gas had come to a stop.

Unidentifiable laughter made its way to his ears as he managed to loll his head to the side and look up at the source; an pale old man with devious translucent grey eyes smiling in his direction.

"What's this? Another idiotic student has stumbled into my little web, eh?" The Sith questioned rhetorically with a satisfied expression before bowing. "I'm actually a bit surprised that you're still conscious…Oh well: the contact nerve toxin left in the air should knock you out soon enough. I've developed an immunity toward it, but I imagine it must still be _quite _effective on you. Either way; for now:" Crackling evilly again, he raised his arms flamboyantly, "_welcome_!"

-----

"_Urgh_…" Revan moaned out, still disorient from the noxious gas that was only now beginning to clear his system while he blinked to try to clear his vision of darkness, "_Where the_…_hell am I_?" He demanded groggily.

"Awake already, are you? _Good_!" The same taunting tone from earlier voiced yet again as he heard footsteps approach him. "This is the tomb of the Sith Lord Tulak Hord, if you don't remember. I've recently taken up residence here, for now…It's dusty and full of critters, but it's home."

Feeling that his arms could support the weight of his body, the man slowly pushed himself up to his feet, but stumbled and landed on his knees as he could not fully stand. Looking up to once again and seeing the ashen, grinning face of the old hermit; his eyes narrowed dangerously as he took in the unconscious and disabled forms of his companions.

"I'll kill you for what you've done here."

"_Oh-ho_!" His captor clapped, clearly pleased with his audacious display. "Spiteful little thing, aren't you?" He tsked. "Let's not forget, however, who has whom at a disadvantage, shall we?" Witnessing the incensed gaze on the younger man's face, he shook his head. "No, no; let's keep things civilized for the time being. Now then…introductions are always the place to start, if I remember correctly."

"I'll save you the time, Uln." Revan spat, seeing the surprise on the older man's face. "Yeah, you dirty bastard; I've been told about you."

Jorak smiled wickedly, clearly pleased. "Is that so? What an exciting revelation: it's definitely nice to still be the topic of discussion occasionally. Maybe there's a class on me? Mmm…hmm…" He contemplated, his smile suddenly disappearing, "maybe not – but we're being rude; there's a former pupil of mine that has yet to be introduced." His lightsaber flicked nonchalantly to his right. "The other student here that I captured earlier, you should know well enough. His name is Mekel; say hello, Mekel."

Hearing weakened groans, Revan's eyes gazed in the direction they were coming from, indeed seeing one of his competitors, the same that had starved the hopefuls when he first approached the Sith academy, before scoffing.

_The fool must have been trying to gain prestige; looks like he went and bit off more than he could chew._

Jorak tsked disappointedly. "Poor lad: he's had a hard day…But that's irrelevant for now; I propose that we onto the main event: you see, I'd like to discover if you've got the pluck of an old-fashioned Sith. Most of the drek Uthar has been passing through these days is _so_ pathetic." He nudged his head. "Take young Mekel here…I already tested him. Didn't I, Mekel?"

"_Uhhhr_…I…_ohhh_…" His captive moaned out pathetically, swaying as it looked like he could barely stand.

"Yes, yes; you're welcome." The same corrupt smile returned to the old man's lips before he looked back to his newest prey. "You see, Mekel here had the cruel disposition of a Sith, but not the…_gumption_ that I'm looking for, you understand?"

"Sanity left you a long time ago, didn't it, Uln?"

Jorak laughed madly. "_Ahhh_, you're a perceptive one, aren't you? But what, dear boy, is a little mental instability between tutor and pupil? The only thing important here is to better the Sith as a whole; it's a big job."

"Great; the lunatic's got a dream…." He grumbled scathingly, grimacing as he tried, once again, to stand only to meet failure as the toxin still coursed through his veins and sapped him of his strength. "Well, let me be the first one to cut the bull – whatever little _test_ you've cooked up, I have no intention of playing along. So, here's what I suggest: you run while this poison still has some effect on me, or stay here and die by my hand."

"You certainly are an overconfident thing, aren't you? While refreshing, it is becoming a bit redundant when looking at the situation you're in." The old man commented bluntly. "On the subject of your test, however; I can't seem to recall when it was that I offered you a choice on anything other than its completion. You can refuse to answer the questions, of course, but then I'm afraid I'll just have to assume the worst." He clapped his hands together happily. "So then! This is how it goes: I'm going to pose a few moral questions to you. Get them right, and I torture Mekel; get them wrong, though, and I end up torturing _you_…Though Mekel here is a bit weak; he probably won't be able to take much more punishment. Mind you, get too many wrong yourself and you'll die instead. I really don't know what you think of him – maybe you don't like him. Perhaps you even think he deserves to be murdered?" He inquired interestedly. "Well, here's your chance; fair enough?"

Refusing to respond, Revan exhaled unhurriedly before closing his eyes, the only real concern in his head the time he had already wasted on the crazed hermit in front of him when he could have been using it for more crucial things, using it to complete his single goal; he didn't even know the length of time of which he had been knocked out.

_This…is inexcusable. _

His fingernails scraped harshly against the stone beneath him while he felt his face physically contort to display the inner turmoil he felt inside: the frustration; the rage; the agitation. "_I want your worst_."

The words were sadistically commanding – a clear yearning inside to be wounded; the man sought the torture his captor spoke of it, desired to feel pure agony course through every nerve of his skin; he wanted to **suffer**.

Jorak took in the sight of his now submitting form and gave another, short raspy bark of laughter, intrigued by his request before turning to his other captive. "_Well_ then; any last comments before we begin, Mekel?"

"_Uhhhnn_…" The prospect groaned unfocusedly, "We can…both survive…attack him _together_!"

"Now, now, dear lad; let's not rely on the impossible. Do you really think your friend here will answer questions wrong just to spare little you, risking his own life?" The hermit cocked his head questioningly. "And how many correctly answered questions before you die, hmmm? No, don't be silly…You had your chance, remember?" Quickly gaining a wide grin, he exhaled contentedly. "On that note, let's begin!" He pointed his weapon's hilt in Revan's direction. "Now then: your immediate superior amongst the Sith is an effective commander and a fine leader. He trusts you and you like him as well; you see an opportunity to kill him. What do you do?"

"I refuse to answer." The hostage replied condescendingly, his face still expressionless.

"Refusing to answer? Well, that's the same as not knowing; I'll assume you understand the consequences of such." He tsked in a way that sounded almost regretful. "Sad, really, that you would do this to yourself."

Holding an outstretched hand in his direction, Revan could hear a crackling energy grow loud, the surge of coursing electricity abruptly releasing from Jorak's hand as numerous, spiky forks of lightning engulfed the kneeling man's body; refusing the instinct to scream from the severe pain of his rapidly reddening skin, he harshly bit down on his bottom lip to stop any noise from escaping – until the attack finally desisted. He couldn't restrain a shaky grunt at the sudden stop of pain, though it was stifled as he held it in, knowing what he was dealt was nowhere near the extent of Uln's power.

_Is this familiar…One way he breaks you?_

"Splendid: you're still conscious – on to round two!" Jorak exclaimed brightly. "You come across a group of humans who are threatened by dangerous animals. They pled for help, offering you a reward. What do you do?"

Revan, refusing to open his eyes, collected enough saliva in his parched mouth to spit in the direction of his voice. "Waste of time."

He shook his head. "Well now you're just punishing yourself; do you really not know the answers, here?" Extending his arm once again, the old man sighed. "_Shame_…Oh well; at any rate, here is your punishment."

Another ferocious tidal wave of electrical energy discharged from the Sith's fingertips, swallowing his captive's body for the second time as his hands clawed fiercely into two fists, his lip drawing blood from how hard his teeth gnashed against the tender flesh. Already weakened form convulsing involuntarily from the electrocuting tremors running amok through his system, his breathing labored at its end while still deeming the attack reserved.

_How often…Is he relentless? __**Answer**__** me**__…_

Jorak exhaled contentedly, enjoying his hostage's spirit. "I'm impressed; Mekel, over there, was already begging for mercy at this point, yet here you still are – I must admit; I'm curious to see just how long it'll take for you to crack…Hopefully, it'll be before your death, yes? Now how to proceed…" He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, "Let's see…Ah, yes. You discover an aspect of the Force that gives you great power. Do you share it and strengthen the Sith as a whole or keep it to yourself?"

"_Fuck off_."

The hermit's sunny disposition soured as he scowled at the young man. "And here I thought this question was an easy one…Ah well: to each his own." He sighed, as if the whole thing was some big waste. "I just want you to know that you asked for this, but no fear; I swear this will be for your own good."

Torso doubling over to the meet his tremulous knees, Revan writhed from the excruciating pain of his every cell feeling like it was being individually pierced with white-hot needles, that not even coming close to the torment of feeling his very life's essence slowly draining away from an already depleted source. The gradually rising intensity of the bolts made him grind his teeth together in an attempt to take his mind off of what he was experiencing, doing his best not to rip his tongue out in the process; once more the overwhelming barrage was cut off, the man inhaling sharply as his body shook uncontrollably, his skin throbbing angrily from what it had been subjected to.

_**Please**__…open it. Waiting is insufferable – I deserve it…Punish me __**now**__…._

"Hm…Still going even after that?" The former Sith master questioned with slight astonishment at his pupil's perseverance. "All right, then; let's continue: one of your underlings has made a major mistake that makes you look bad. He is normally very competent and skilled. Do you kill him or give him another shot?"

"Hurry up…and get to the torture." Revan forced out before retching; staving his nausea back, he focused instead on ways to endure the imminent electrical torrent that he would be subjected to yet again.

"You're not trying to make me angry, are you?" Glaring now at the insolent youth, Jorak sneered at his worthless pride. "If you are, that would only be pointless posturing on your part – is answering really so difficult?" Receiving no answer, the hermit shrugged. "Good help is so hard to find these days…Oh well; here's your reward."

Revan's face twisted severely from the inconceivable pain that once again fried his system and seemed to damage his very soul, his head jerking back wildly as his mouth was frozen in a silent scream, still refusing to give Uln the satisfaction even as his blood boiled painfully. Whole body surrendering to gravity, the besieged man laid gasping for air as the electric attack was withdrawn, a thin trail of saliva dripping down the corner of his mouth as he could not stop trembling; he closed his eyes forcefully and eradicated every barrier his side of their bond held.

_**Feel**__** me **__– __**take my pain**__! I'll make my own __**hell**__ if I can't sense yours – save myself only to be __**broken**__ again! I won't – can't survive without knowing __**how**__ much…__**How**__ badly…__**How**__ long. __**So take it**__. One of us…__**needs**__ to feel the other…. _

His captor laughed with perverted glee. "What a pretty picture – you and Mekel here are starting to look _exceptionally _similar! Though it is a shame that you'll just be another failed pupil when you didn't even try to answer my questions…Speaking of; here's the last one." He smiled sinisterly, "You're about to die. Do you pass on your knowledge to your apprentice to make him stronger…or do you use your last breath to strike at your enemies?"

Disregarding Uln's mocking words and his question, Revan made no movement to acknowledge him or to even attempt to get up as he focused on the inert bond, feeling his ruptured heart continue to descend as he still did not receive a response.

"No answer?" Jorak suddenly questioned curiously before shaking his head, "Hmph. Such insolent students I get, these days. You deserve this, and then some!" He barked intolerantly as he stretched out his hand again. "Ha ha; I'll enjoy this one. _Time_ _for_ _your_ _medicine_!"

The wave of electric torture was considerably insignificant to the young man this time around; yes, the agony of it was still the same, if not worse from his captor trying to prove a point, but his own inner turmoil was on that of such a grander scale that it made any other budding competition seem utterly irrelevant. Languished exhale leaving his lips softly as the cold stone floor beneath him cooled his singed body, Revan knew that he couldn't move if he wanted to as he called on the Force to stabilize an otherwise grave condition; he was completely tapped out, the combination of the temporary poison and lightning sapping him dry.

Jorak tsked with obvious dissatisfaction. "Now…this is odd: the test is over and you're both still alive. Well, that's certainly never happened before; _hmmmn_…What to do; what to do…" He trailed pensively, before nudging his head indifferently. "I suppose this means you can go free, Mekel. Your friend is more interesting, by far – certainly does well for torture, almost seems eager for it…I'll have to figure out what do with him; I certainly can't keep electrocuting him all day – things would get dull." Disinterestedly, he waved his hand toward the door. "Run along now."

"Or…or, I could use the Force to free them! And we could kill _you_!" Mekel exclaimed firmly, using stored strength to stand solidly as he detached his lightsaber. "Seems you didn't think of that, _old man_!"

"_What_?!" The hermit's eyes bulged in what, for the first time, looked like true fear. "Mutiny! Behave students! I'll…_That's it_!" He shouted frantically before igniting his own weapon, seeing that Mekel was not backing down. "_Detention for all of you_! _Permanent detention_!!"

Watching his fellow student unleash a strong, vibrant vein of Force from his fingertips and to an unsuspecting Jorak, Revan nodded to him appreciatively as several smaller veins broke off from the main one and found him and Jolee, the latter slowly beginning to stir with a tired groan. Feeling his own strength flow back throughout the limbs of his once exhausted body, the young man managed to sit up as Mekel's attack had been the last push needed to clearly dismantle the toxin's hold over him.

"You'll die for what you put me through!" Mekel swore as he powered his own lightsaber, charging toward the old Sith in a rage as he deliver quick, focused blows.

Blocking each and every one of the young prospect's strikes, Jorak smiled treacherously. "The only one that will die today is you and your friend over there!"

"No; I have to agree with Mekel: your chances aren't so great, Uln." Revan commented evenly before facing his left. "HK – re-activate."

The droid's optical sensors flashed brightly as it became operational in mere seconds of his creator giving the command.

_**Statement**__: Fully operational and ready;_ The droid immediately raised its blasters,_ what shall I kill for you, Master? _

An ominous smile graced his lips before pointing to the hermit. "Him – shoot a hole through the bastard's head."

_**Pleased Declaration**__: Happily, Master. I will attempt to make it as painful as possible before imminent death._

The former Sith master chuckled superiorly. "Oh? So your little toy does still work? No matter – you're a fool if you think a few haphazard blaster bolts will kill me."

As if proving his point, the old man effortlessly deflected each and every one of HK's shots, laughing mockingly as it continued to fire before it faded when Mekel suddenly charged again; evading the strike with only minimum efficiency, Jorak snarled as two of the droid's shots caught him in his shoulder and weapon wielding arm. Though he was able to block the rest of the bolts, even with his injury, he gave Mekel a wave of Force lightning at the same time.

"Shame, shame – attacking your instructor while he's busy is unwise, boy!" He chastised as he watched his hostage writhe and cry out in pain. "You should have run when you had the chance! But first…Let's take care of this dro-"

The hermit's last word was cut off as he abruptly began sputtering violently, sickening choking sounds filling the tomb.

"_Wow_…_much _better. You must agree?" Revan questioned aloofly as he pushed himself off the ground and stood to his feet, chilling eyes never leaving his victim as he used the Force to suspend his body in the air. "Even you must get tired of constantly hearing the sound of your own voice…Or maybe not – I hear the insane need something to cling to, something to get them through." He took a few steps forward before his brow dipped inquiringly. "Actually: you might be able to help me; our situations are somewhat similar: we both seemed to have been abandoned by something important to us…_Yes_; you could do something beneficial before you die…." Releasing his grip on the man's throat somewhat, he was careful to watch Uln's vitals to make sure he would not faint through his own interrogation. "How did you manage to survive here without another's voice? Did you just talk to yourself like I said before? Maybe you made an imaginary companion?" His golden eyes darkened as he did not receive an immediate answer, too busy gasping for precious oxygen. "Or did your sadistic acts toward these students fill your twisted need for company?"

Revealing a single hand; Revan could feel waves of Force energy flow through every limb in his body before meeting at his fingertips to unleash a powerful wave of lightening on the hovering hermit, the older man contorting violently in unvoiced agony.

"I won't let you scream." He commented simply, indifferent to the scene before him as he stopped his attack but resumed crushing his windpipe. "It's…unbecoming – although it seems that we've made a small breakthrough: capturing and torturing students is how you survived isolation. Perhaps I'll even survive a bit longer by torturing you? You'd certainly deserve it for delaying me as long as you have." The young man then sighed as if deeply distressed, his expression relaying internal distress as he began pacing. "_Ah_, but my voice would hate that – hate even what little I'm doing right now! If it could reach me, it would beg me to stop; want me to have mercy…and I would do anything to please it." Suddenly pausing, he looked up to the former Sith master, all confliction abandoning his face as it was once again detached, "But I can't hear it."

Shocking the man with an intense, but short dose of electricity once again, Revan gave a languid flick of his hand to smash Uln's body harshly against a wall before viciously flinging him back down to the ground, releasing his hold on his esophagus as his body made contact; he would not let him blackout.

"_Uhhhh_…" Jorak moaned breathlessly in what appeared to be significant pain, trying to inhale while his damaged body punished him for it.

"While…gratifying, I can't allow myself to waste any more time on you – I'm sure you know your fate." Revan stated, uncaringly dragging his fallen form in front of HK before positioning his head directly in front of one of the droid's blasters. "Kill him."

Without a moment's hesitation, a shot rang out and efficiently pierced through the hermit's skull, the now still cadaver dragged back to be removed of its belongings and tossed aside with the Force; pocketing the small datapad that contained the crazed hermit's writings, Revan looked in Mekel's direction, not surprised to see the complete lack of shock or fear from his actions: he would have done the same, if not more.

"What do you know?" His competitor questioned dully as he looked in Jorak's direction, "I guess he wasn't a 'true Sith' after all." Exhaling heavily as he picked his worn-out form off the ground, he sighed. "After all that, it's hard to believe that I'm still alive. You saved me…You could have easily just answered those questions, saved yourself the pain, and let me die."

"My pride saved you more than anything – I'm not the type to answer questions against my will. I'm sure Uln didn't care about the answers, anyway: he just wanted one of us dead." He shrugged, "And beside the fact that you're a prick, you didn't deserve to die like that – at least not from the likes of him."

Mekel nodded solemnly. "Yeah, well…I see what you mean. I've never…I mean, I've never been on that side of the fence before. It…makes you think." He shook his head as if trying to rid the conflicting emotions inside him. "But I'd be dead if you weren't…I mean, if you were a proper Sith. But you're not, are you?" Seeing a dangerous smile emerge on the other's face, the man knew he shouldn't delve any further. "Don't worry; I won't tell anyone."

"Really? I would have to…silence you, otherwise – which would be a shame after going through all this, but it's really not an option to just take your word." He paused in thought. "Maybe you'd like to change your ways after what you've seen here, seen what being _their_ kind of Sith is all about?"

"You mean…" His eyes widened from even the thought, "the light side? I've…never thought about that. Can you even go back? I've done some…I mean; I've hurt a lot of people…."

"Even so, there's always remorse." An older voice answered as Jolee slowly made his way to the two men, limping slightly as his body was still diluting the poison in his system. "And atonement. That's the harder path, though, boy – nowhere near for the faint of heart who can't make the commitment. Think you can endure it?"

Hesitating from the wise words, the young man gradually shook his head. "I…don't think the light side is for me, but…I'm starting to think that the Sith might not be either. Maybe…maybe I just need to leave for a while, figure things out for and by myself."

"Well, if you're looking to get into the hermit business, there is this vacancy on Kashyyyk…" Revan trailed casually.

"Don't push it, kid."

Watching his former competitor chuckle from his slave's words, Mekel, though thinking the interaction weird for the relationship the two were supposed to have, left it alone. "Well, I should get going. Thanks, I suppose…and good luck."

HK-47 looked to his creator. _**Commentary**__: You are going to let the meatbag leave this place alive? Very dicey decision, Master._

Revan heaved a weary groan, feeling the severity of the wounds as the adrenaline from before began to leave his body. "He's going to be more concerned with leaving the academy alive, HK. I don't think you can just leave Uthar a note saying no hard feelings and a plate of cookies…Hey, old man;" He looked in Jolee's direction, "there are some extra medpacks back in my room: you think you can make it there without dying on me?"

The Jedi scoffed from the cheeky insinuation. "That your way of finally taking a break – blaming it on my injuries? I would look to your own health before grumbling over mine."

"_My_ health?" The younger man questioned dryly, knowing his body was no doubt covered with bruises and even some exposed welts; he could feel one on his neck throbbing dully. "I've had worse than this; trust me."

"Oh, save it – your bravado's starting to give me a headache." Jolee stated back with obvious irritation, "Now, you told me you didn't bring me here to "nag", but since I've never made it a priority to listen to you before; I'll say it anyway: you're pushing yourself too hard." He told him truthfully, hoping it would penetrate his thick skull, "I understand that you're in a hurry and that you want to get out of here, but we've been here for who knows how long and I have yet to see you eat or drink anything during that time – let alone rest. You've stalled long enough: take a break, dammit."

A heavy sigh exited Revan's mouth as his eyes shut tightly, one hand coming up to rub against his temple roughly with noticeable frustration. "Twenty minutes – no more than thirty…Will that get you to shut-up?"

"Don't you get snippy with me, kid; I wouldn't have to waste my breath if you knew how to take care of yourself."

"You're right, but that's why you're here: you care and you're blunt." He replied apathetically; no taunting tone to show it was a joke; no sign of impending laughter. "I knew that if I ever got to a point where you had to say something, it would probably be fairly imperative – which is why I agreed to your break." Hand leaving his head, it settled on the side of his neck before an exploratory finger scraped hard against the found irritation without wincing, blood being revealed as he examined the retrieved digit. "I'm having a hard time differentiating pains right now…An even harder time convincing myself I don't deserve them." Seeing Jolee's disconcerting expression, Revan wiped his finger on his robe before giving what he hoped was a reassuring expression to the older man. "We should head back: the twenty minutes start now."

--------------

"And so you approach me yet again, young one." Uthar Wynn's calm voice announced as he once again knew someone was behind him before they even said a word; his translucent eyes opened from his interrupted meditation before standing up. "I have found you to be most impressive…You are off to an excellent beginning."

Revan bowed in gratitude. "Thank you, but you will find that I'm not one to become complacent; I have more news for you."

"Oh?"

"I dealt with those renegade students: they were hiding in the caves infested by shyrack."

The Sith's brow arched in interest. "Ahhh…The ones I ordered to be executed for their munity? It's done then?"

"Yes; they're all dead." He answered unflinchingly, knowing no signs of deceit could be deciphered from his answer.

"Indeed? I had the cave checked not too long ago and found only a couple of bodies." The slightest hint of distrust touched his voice. "Perhaps the shyrack ate them?"

"I wouldn't be surprised…Though there were hostile tu'kata in the cavern as well. It wouldn't be farfetched to think that, since the renegades were dead, they could feast on them without further conflict."

Uthar nodded, seemingly appreciating his falsehood. "Well, it is just as good, I suppose. Perhaps a final lesson was learned before their untimely demise."

"I have something else to present to you, Master." Digging into his pocket, Revan pulled out the small tablet taken from the sadistic hermit's body. "It's the writings of Jorak Uln."

"Do you? You've certainly been busy; let me see that." He apprehended the tablet from the other's hand. "Interesting…It appears my old master was busy studying the writings in one of the tombs. I do hope you had to pry this from his dead fingers."

"He's dead as well."

"Hmm…Your injuries assure me that what you say is the truth; my old master would no doubt prove challenging for a mere prospect, even one as strong in the Force as you. Regardless, you have impressed me even more with your worthy act. Between that and your efforts with the renegade students, you have gained considerable prestige…You are coming close to the end. It would be unwise to falter now – you may leave." Uthar concluded, once again ending their conversation by returning to his meditative position on the ground.

Giving another customary bow to keep up appearances, Revan turned away to make his way back to his room, feeling his accomplishments bittersweet as he still did not have enough prestige to move on, but enough that he was guaranteed to be close to the finish line.

"I wonder what's so important that that "master" of yours has to meditate constantly." Jolee stated wryly, "I don't think there's been a time where I haven't seen that man rooted to the middle of the floor; these new, young Sith sure are getting lazy."

Shaking his head at the droll comment, but not replying to it, the younger man continued down the long hallways of the student quarters, taking the second right and heading to the last room – only to see Yuthura sitting on his bed with a disarming, if not pleased smile.

"Ah, Kaleb; you've returned."No doubt noticing the shock that could not help but amalgamate into his expression from another one of her surprise visits; the Twi'lek's smile developed an inquisitive inflection. "I am curious as to why you always seem to be so taken aback when you see me."

It was amazing how fast his mind had supplied him with an adequate excuse, his instincts giving him the degree of charm needed to have it carried out. "I have an unquestionably attractive woman sitting on the bed in my private quarters; is it really so surprising that I've become momentarily stunned from this encounter?"

Yuthura cocked her head to the side lightly, not denying his answer. "A realistic justification…if not uninspired. If I have learned anything in life well, it is that men of any species are all the same." Uncrossing her legs, she stood as a way to make sure he would keep his focus. "I do value your civility, however: you have yet to plainly ask my reasons for being here. Are you becoming complacent with my plan since it has succeeded so far?"

"I am never complacent." He assured openly, the previous smile on his lips turning into a thin, serious line. "And while I have done my best to make your plan a reality, it seems I still have much work yet to do."

"From what I have heard, you have gained even more prestige, an impressive deal more than what you had the last time we spoke – add all that to the fact that you have even eliminated one of your competitors along the way. You are swiftly closing in on victory…that is good; do not succumb so easily to impatience: you will soon reach your goal."

"Will I?" Revan questioned, masking the overwhelming bitterness he held inside from her words. "Coming from you, it must be true…But, you were right – I did wonder why you're here; since it doesn't appear to be about my performance; did you want to check up on me?"

The woman smiled, clearly not minding the implications that could come along with the action. "I did, actually. If I am not mistaken, I was to take care of my "tool", yes?" She questioned rhetorically, using the same term he had before as her eyes examined the various bruises and injuries on his exposed skin. "Even if that tool does not take proper care of himself…Your enthusiasm is appreciated, but if you injure yourself fatally, you will not be able to see my plan through: do not become a liability."

"If one listens closely it would sound as if you're concerned, Mistress."

"In a way – you are an investment that I have put time and effort into; would it not be a waste to let you die and have all my hard work be for naught?" Not waiting for a reply, she pointed a finger to the desk behind them. "You have been gone for some time and soon the day will be over, so I did you the service of requesting a meal; regain your strength, dress your wounds, and earn the last bit of prestige needed to encourage Master Uthar you are worthy of becoming a Sith."

He gave a shallow bow of his head, before figuring that he would actually have to convince her that her commands had been taken to heart; he moved past the Twi'lek and grabbed the nicely filled tray of food before sitting down on his bed. "I'm grateful."

Yuthura merely nodded. "One last thing: I've noticed that you've neglected to speak to Lashowe; I still think that approaching her would be your next best move…but if you so adamantly refuse to make use of her gullible nature, and my useful advice, make sure your secondary arrangement has the same rate of success."

"You needn't worry." Seeing that she was still watching him almost expectantly and that there was no way he could leave until she was gone, Revan picked up a faintly warm roll from his tray and took a bite of it, letting contrived enjoyment play across his features while swallowing before looking up to her, "Let's make this break productive: tell me about yourself."

"About myself?" It was her turn to be surprised as it was clear she was not expecting such a frank request. "If you must know, I am originally from Sleheyron. I was a slave to a cruel master, Omeesh the Hutt." She said the name as if it were poison on her tongue, her expression toward him now stern. "I am sure you don't need to know more."

Shrugging his shoulders as he took another bite, he shook his head. "I won't lie: I do want to know more about you, but I'm in no position to pry." The man told her before giving a short wave, not at all shocked from her confused expression; she was probably not used to a person being so considerate of her feelings. "I should finish eating before this gets cold; though I sincerely hope we can continue this later, Mistress."

Recovering from her temporary daze, Yuthura allowed a nod to once more be her answer. "Yes; well…I hope to see you soon." As soon as the last word had completely left her lips, the woman departed from the room, the sound of her footsteps gradually becoming fainter and fainter.

Jolee tsked repeatedly as soon as the signal was given that it was safe for them to speak freely again. "That's one hell of a gift you've got there, kid; crazy charisma out the wazoo: before my very eyes, I see Miss Dark Side there go from aloof to demure in a matter of minutes. Next thing you know, she'll be kissing the damn ground he walks on."

_**Commentary**__: It is because the master is the master – though it is not only female organics that are affected. He excelled and still excels at making most meatbags do his bidding without the use of violence. __**Statement**__: Though a useful skill to some; I would prefer if you we could just kill everyone in this place and be done with it; it's far faster, Master. I would even hazard to say it would be more gratifying as well._

The old Jedi scoffed. "Well, your droid is redundant as always – it's like the thing can't go four seconds without saying 'kill', 'death', or 'maim'. Frankly, I'm amazed you can program a machine to be so bloodthirsty."

Dropping the useless roll in his hand back to the mostly untouched plate of food, Revan laid the tray aside as he rose from the mattress. "All right: it's been long enough; she'll at least be out of this area for now."

Jolee sighed from his indomitable attitude that wouldn't do him any good if he got himself killed. "At least eat the rest of your food, kid."

"I left it for a reason – it doesn't look like they provide slaves with proper meals." He explained distractedly, not focusing on his companion's worries but more on his next course of action. "HK doesn't have to eat, so it's all yours."

"There's no way you can tell me that those few bites you took were-"

"Enough." The younger man interrupted brusquely, his piercing eyes severe as he felt his temper begin to rouse. "I've done what you asked; I've taken your break – so either get ready to leave or get out of my way."

Not stopping him as he brushed past to make his way to the other side of the room, Jolee only met his stubborn disposition with an even tone. "I'm not going anywhere when you're letting this foolishness blind your senses."

Continuing on as the other's choice was made clear, Revan's target was the lockbox he had been provided from the academy; he keyed in the combination and grabbed two advanced medpacks, wasting no time as he stripped himself of his robe and undershirt and methodically applied antiseptic and medicinal salve to all areas on his torso and neck that gave him the most pain before grabbing the container of spray bandages to cover the once critically opened wounds so they would heal faster.

"Now, you can ignore me if you want, but I do know you're hurting right now – it's perhaps even the worst pain you've ever experienced…But doing this – starving yourself? It _won't _change anything – and it certainly won't help Bastila."

"So you have the bond now, old man? Can feel what I can't?" Revan asked heatedly, feeling his muscles tense while he tried to disregard the seething anger that made his heartbeats feel like tremors throughout his body; his head emerged from the shirt's collar. "What about the tortures; the deprivation – do you know about those as well?"

"No. But what I do know is that she wouldn't want you being stupid enough to willingly hurt yourself." His voice remained calm, not giving the other any more ammunition for his rage, "Especially if she's doing all she can to keep her pain away."

Something inside of him snapped violently.

"_Then tell her it's killing me_!" He roared, ears ringing loudly now as his blood boiled. "If you know her so _damn_ _well_, show her the _hell_ she's created – the absolute _guilt_ – _how I'm suffocating_! Make her _feel_ _my_ _misery_; make it so _unbearable_ that it _forces_ her to give me back her _own_! Can you do _that_, Jolee – _can you fucking do that_?" Feeling his hatred churn and bubble inside of his gut, it laced his every word with bile spewing from his raw throat; his acidic wrath wanting to devastate – wanting everything to hurt.

But then it was severed...Because there was feeling.

Extremely faint, fighting its way past all the hate and disgust he held inside, Revan felt something so unspeakably foreign from the last several days that it only could have come from….

_**Her.**_

…_Beautiful_…

Words failed him – they couldn't even touch…**it**. It was hopelessness; it was affliction; it was despondency; it was pain; was heartache, was anguish, was sorrow, was woe; despair, wretchedness, dejection, gloom; melancholyforlorndespairinginconsolablebrokenhearteddepressedworriedsaddeneddestituteremorsefulgrievedapologeticshame.

The mere sensation of what she had given enveloped and overwhelmed him like nothing else, weaving, with its utter emotion, a tale that told not of her trials, the torments suffered at Malak's hands – but of her **regret**, her deepest, unimaginable lamentation revealed from knowing what she was inflicting on him. In a matter of seconds, she had delivered, without a word, a solitary note that had managed to say it all.

And then it was over.

Her side of their once pulsing bond came crashing down and shut him out so completely and abruptly, that the fact of it ever being opened became questionable; stumbling to the bed with a broken gasp, Revan clutched his chest fiercely, eyes widened in shock as his mind could not handle the situation – not for the second time: his once empty vessel being so fantastically filled only to be stripped bare.

Gone: she had been stolen from him yet again…and he could not take it.

Feeling a gaping hole in his heart, the pain inconceivable; the man denied the desolation that planned to bury him alive, ignored the garbled cries of his worried companion, and successfully blocked out the rest of the world. If she did not wallow in self-pity in her one moment of communication – if she was confident enough he would rescue her that she did not remind him of it; he would not fail her expectations, the goal that he had given himself on the ship bringing clarity and purpose to his unstable mind as he made his way out of the room.

_**By any means necessary.**_


End file.
